Chapter 86
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 86
“…And what about that bitch?” Marmolia asked in a hollow voice, finally grasping the situation.
Unlike the incubus, the lycanthrope replied, his tone completely undaunted. “She left with the ancient monster.”
They weren’t the only ones. The Demon Kings of Judeca had departed the moment the sun rose. The unprecedented incident had sent everyone scrambling away faster than usual.
Aside from a few monsters left behind to clean up, Marmolia was the only Demon King remaining in the abandoned monastery.
She lamented.
Once again, she had failed to win.
And it was a complete and utter defeat, one that left no hope of ever reversing their positions. The reality that Melju’s status as a member of the Primordial Core could never be surpassed, no matter the effort, was like a brand seared into her soul. The hidden scars beneath her skin began to prickle and burn.
“You are still our Demon King,” the lycanthrope said to Marmolia, whose eyes had gone cold.
The incubus chimed in. “Despite this unfortunate incident, you still have factions that support you, Demon King.”
“That is correct, Demon King.”
“The other Demon Kings have been talking. They suggested we coordinate our stories about your broken horn… Though not all of them, a significant number of monsters will still support you.”
A horn symbolized a Demon King’s authority. Naturally, a broken one meant a fall from grace, but that was only a fatal blow for Demon Kings who, like Melju once was, had lost everything—even their horns. In fact, some Demon Kings who had lost their horns in battle possessed spirits that could pierce the very heavens.
“So, it won’t be a major issue. You should also put this rivalry behind you, Demon King…”
“Shut up.”
At the sudden, hysterical command, the lycanthrope looked down at Marmolia. The face of the Demon King, who had lost both her horn and her authority, was contorted with rage.
“Rivalry? You think that bitch is my rival? Who do you think you’re talking to?!”
“If you do not put it behind you, you cannot move forward.”
“Shut uuuuuup!”
With a shriek, a low-tier fire spell materialized before Marmolia and struck the lycanthrope squarely in the abdomen.
The lycanthrope took the spell head-on, merely sliding back a few inches without any other reaction. He remained silent, his hands clasped behind his back. The flames left an ugly burn mark where they had struck.
“Forget it? What does a mere monster like you know, spouting such bullshit! I can’t forgive her. I’ll never forgive her. I’m going to kill her!”
Her actions held no authority. She was just like her horn—broken.
“It is not as if you have a clear plan,” the lycanthrope stated in a low voice.
Marmolia could not bring herself to answer. Normally, these monsters would not—and could not—speak to her so boldly. The fact that they were doing so now meant either their situation was incredibly dire, or her authority as a Demon King had plummeted.
It didn’t matter which. She didn’t care if everything she had built was ruined.
Marmolia’s mind was already consumed entirely by revenge. She couldn’t bear to watch Melju succeed.
Yes, the point wasn’t how much she, as a Demon King, would lose.
It was how much she could ruin the Demon King named Melju.
“Never. Even if I die, I will never forgive her. I’ll ruin her. I’ll crush her.”
The lycanthrope had spoken of her horn, suggesting she could return to her normal life, but that was impossible. Utter nonsense. As long as this incident remained a trauma in Marmolia’s mind, there was no going back.
Yes, she had to get revenge.
“…I have to ruin Melju.”
Marmolia’s breathing grew ragged. Ignoring her two subordinates as if they didn’t exist, she stared wide-eyed at the floor and began gnawing on her fingernails.
…Yes, let’s ruin her. There’s still a chance. I just need to ruin Melju.
The Primordial Core was only recruiting Melju out of necessity, weren’t they? If so, she just had to turn Melju into a useless lump of flesh. If Melju was ruined to the point of worthlessness, the Primordial Core would surely abandon her.
She could blow off one of her legs, gouge out both her eyes, or even kill her if it came to that…
“Heh, ehehehe.”
A mad grin twisted her face as she continued her train of thought.
First, they must not be allowed to return to the Primordial Core. The moment they did, she wouldn’t be able to touch them. If she was going to do this, she had to finish it before then.
The Primordial Core was a great distance from here. They couldn’t have walked, so they must have used some form of transport to reach Knecht. Whether they traveled by air or by carriage, Marmolia had no way of knowing.
Regardless, they would have to pass through Knecht to return. If she wanted to see this through, she had to strike them on the road.
—Should I wage an all-out war?
That was madness. That wretched bitch had the strongest monster as her ally.
—Then, assassination?
Realistically, this was her only option. However, conventional methods wouldn’t work. She could hire monsters specialized in assassination, but Melju wouldn’t fall for such cheap tricks.
Above all, assassination was a double-edged sword. The moment it failed, the backlash would fall entirely on her. If she was going to do it, she had to ensure it succeeded. She needed to be fully prepared.
“…The other Demon Kings.”
She unconsciously spoke her thoughts aloud. Normally, when plotting something, she would have gathered the forces of other Demon Kings.
But this time, no one will help.
There was no way the Demon Kings would join a plan that meant opposing Swallow. Furthermore, if rumors spread and this reached Yubar’s ears, she wouldn’t even get the chance to try.
Reinforcements. She needed reinforcements.
“Reinforcements, reinforcements… someone to help… reinforcements, reinforcements…”
Repeating the words like a mantra, Marmolia snapped out of her trance at the cold sensation trickling down her wrist. Before she knew it, her teeth had moved from her nails to the flesh of her fingers.
The incubus pulled a handkerchief from his breast pocket and gently wiped away the blood before it could stain her dress.
“Ah.”
And then, Marmolia remembered.
“…Humans.”
Marmolia was a Demon King who ruled with her tongue. She had grown her faction through negotiation and dialogue, never hesitating to collude with enemies for her own advancement.
Humans were among those she colluded with.
Of course, Marmolia hated humans as much as any other monster, so it was less a fair trade and more a matter of mutual use—
“Yes, yes. Ah, ahahaha! Humans! There were the humans!”
Sweeping her hair back from her forehead, Marmolia burst into wild laughter. Weren’t they the perfect tools? Besides, those humans were the kind of trash who would feel no guilt for such an act. They had openly introduced themselves as members of the Empire, demanding she provide monsters for their various biological experiments.
Monsters… at this point, she had plenty to spare.
She whipped her head around to face the lycanthrope and the incubus.
—Those two would certainly make excellent bargaining chips.
Her manic grin vanished in an instant, her expression freezing into a cold mask.
“Then, it can’t be helped.”
* * *
Immediately upon returning to the inn in Knecht, Swallow threw himself onto the bed. The entire process, from entering the inn to collapsing onto the mattress, was incredibly swift.
After burying his face in the bedding, Swallow didn’t move a muscle for several hours, looking as if he weren’t even breathing. Had the innkeeper seen him, they likely would have mistaken him for a corpse.
“You worked hard, Lord Swallow.”
He had certainly exhausted himself in Judeca. Even Patrick would have readily acknowledged it. This time, no one objected to Swallow’s rest.
The remaining tasks were left to Rene and Melju.
First, Rene thoroughly checked the papers she had received from Swallow. There were ten sheets in total—five subjugation requests purchased from the humans, and five more written by the Demon Kings themselves, mimicking the same format.
“…They certainly put some effort into this.”
The five requests created by the Demon Kings were almost identical to the human ones. Even the handwriting was so similar that she would have been completely fooled if the texture of the paper hadn’t been different.
“The curriculum to become a proper Demon King includes a three-year course on learning penmanship befitting our station,” Melju said, scribbling on the margin of a paper.
When Rene glanced over, she saw undeniably beautiful calligraphy. Rene, whose own handwriting was practically hieroglyphic, hid her expression behind a smile. “No amount of good penmanship will stop the humans.”
“To be honest, none of the monsters on the human subjugation requests are useful.”
The Demon Kings had gone to the trouble of picking five, but from Rene’s perspective, they were all candidates she had already filtered out. They weren’t weak, but there was no reason to reconsider monsters that had already been excluded.
“What’s left is…”
The list of monsters chosen by the Demon Kings—ones that hadn’t been on the humans’ subjugation requests.
He said they’re at least on their level.
Since Swallow had said as much on the way back to Knecht, their skills were guaranteed. In fact, since they were reclusive enough to be unknown to humans yet still recognized by the Demon Kings, they might be even more incredible. Plus, recruiting lesser-known monsters was beneficial to the Primordial Core in many ways.
Rene scanned the list with some anticipation. The information on the first two monsters caught her eye.
[Succubus Queen, Elisabiet]
“My, just from her race, she sounds like a sly fox who’s very good at wagging her tail.”
[Giant Lamia of Undermountain]
“‘Possesses exquisite beauty,’ it says.”
Rene ripped both sheets of paper to shreds. She scattered the pieces in the air as if feeding the dog-like monster at Melju’s side.
“They really are nothing but useless monsters.”
The pieces, torn into dozens of shreds, fluttered to the floor.
“Could it be… when you said I only had three years left, this is what you meant?” Melju watched the scene, trembling.
Phase 3
Ar Edelbreas Galf Rivisten believed the Empire must stand above all else. It must be perfect.
Therefore, anything that threatened the Empire had to be completely uprooted.
“…Swallow.”
Murmuring the name of the great disaster threatening the Empire’s peace, Ar turned a page.
He had read over a dozen books this week alone. The stack of ancient tomes beside his chair now stood taller than he was. They were all books related to Swallow or the Primordial Core.
Ever since the Black Disaster had descended upon Riaze, Ar had cut back on sleep to devour any related literature he could find. His obsession was so unwavering it seemed almost mechanical.
—Defeat Swallow.
Ar possessed a single, clear conviction.
After closing the book, he continued his thoughts.
To defeat Swallow…
What was needed to damage that absurd monster was ‘condensed power.’ Hadn’t Uin and Garot experienced it firsthand? Hadn’t Kasper’s death taught them that with absolute certainty? Even a human with the skills of the Yusu Subjugation Squad’s captain couldn’t leave so much as a scratch on him.
This meant that gathering a hundred, or even a thousand, warriors of that caliber would be utterly meaningless. In fact, large numbers were a disadvantage against an ancient monster. The one-sided deaths of allies would only demoralize the remaining forces.
What they needed was a small group of individuals capable of delivering a truly powerful blow.
“…For now, Uin is the only one.”
Even after holding a meeting as the deputy of the Dungeon Subjugation Union Headquarters, he had continuously searched for talent—but no matter how hard he looked, he could find no one with power comparable to Uin’s. The only other possibility was ‘Sian,’ one of the Empire’s three heroes, but he rarely showed himself and was best excluded from their plans.
And even Uin Historia, their only card, stood no chance against Swallow in her current state.
That is why I wish to emphasize the necessity of the 36 Masterpieces.
Those words he had spoken at the meeting were not a lie. The 36 Masterpieces were the one and only means to narrow the absurd gap between them and Swallow.
However, his statement that ‘the subjugation squad that obtains a Masterpiece will be granted ownership of it’…
…That was a lie.
In a situation where ‘condensed power’ was required, that power naturally had to be concentrated in the hands of the few who could wield it properly. Any of the 36 Masterpieces they acquired had to belong to Uin Historia. For half-baked fools to obtain such priceless treasures would be nothing more than casting pearls before swine.
Even the veteran hero, Bern Hishultz, lost a Masterpiece in the Primordial Core.
He mulled over that incident, along with Garot’s testimony. Swallow had declared he would retrieve the Masterpiece, ‘Guillotine’s Tooth,’ hadn’t he? If Ar’s predictions were correct, there was a high probability that the monsters of the Primordial Core could also use the Masterpieces.
If lost, the weapons would directly bolster the enemy’s strength. They had to be cautious.
—Therefore, to kill Swallow.
—We must obtain the 36 Masterpieces to defeat Swallow.