Chapter 357: The King Who Kills Others, The God Who Kills Himself - 11
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 357: The King Who Kills Others, The God Who Kills Himself - 11
Preconceptions are a frightening thing. Snakes are creatures that slither on the ground, so one might assume that an earth serpent, modeled after a snake, would be identical in every detail.
But there's no reason an earth serpent created by a power has to be exactly like a real snake. After all, snakes aren't made of earth. Best to remember that.
In truth, the earth serpent the Regressor created moved half-submerged in the ground. The Regressor and Tyr were on top, while Peru and I hid below.
Magic is about exploiting the gaps in one's perception. Once you know the truth, it's just a trick, but to the ignorant, it's a skill more mysterious than any spell. I used that skill to sneak into the Golden Palace.
The problem with digging a tunnel is getting in and getting out, but I have a way to deal with that.
I held the 10 of Spades over my head and pushed gently.
“Earth Art.”
The ground opened as easily as a lid. I raised the earth above me and quickly climbed out.
The scenery of the Golden Palace had changed dramatically. The Golden Palace I'd visited earlier had been a pastoral scene, like a town hall in the middle of a vast cornfield. Now, it had the atmosphere of a military encampment, with tents pitched and fences erected.
Instead of farmers with scythes, armed guards patrolled the area. Even though it was still daylight, they had bonfires lit and were guarding the fences in pairs. From a large tent, soldiers were filing out in a line, clearly more than its capacity should hold. Their well-maintained equipment gave off a cold gleam.
Armor. Spears. Shields. And soldiers. It was a scene straight out of a textbook. This must be the Golden Lord's imagined recreation of war.
To put it nicely, it was by-the-book. To put it bluntly, it was rigid. No matter how infinite your resources, a lack of flexibility makes you vulnerable.
But if they were to war with the Military State, who knows what might happen. Humans are learning creatures, after all.
Then again, they're homunculi, so maybe they can't learn.
“Anyway. I have to get through that.”
Is it even possible? It looks difficult even with mind-reading, and to make matters worse, I can't read these soldiers' thoughts. Compared to Tyr, they're just grunts, but without my mind-reading, my combat power is on their level. I don't even have the strength to break their armor.
Is this the situation even with the Regressor and Tyr drawing their attention? Tsk. What should I do?
“…It's impossible.”
“Oh. Peru? You followed me?”
I turned to see Peru crawling out of the hole I'd made. I didn't think she'd come. Since she's a launchpad for Unique Magic, it would have been fine for her to stay safely inside.
“Here to help?”
“…I came to interfere.”
“If you're going to interfere, why not use your Unique Magic?”
“…There's no need. If I just scream, they'll notice you.”
Thinking about it, she was right. Huh? She really was.
I thought it would be empty with Tyr and the Regressor drawing their attention. I thought I could just plant a flag in unguarded territory and claim victory. I never imagined they'd have forces to spare.
Or is it? Is it actually empty, and I'm just too weak to break through an empty can?
“Sorry, but that's not much of a threat. It's already next to impossible to get in there without being seen.”
“…If you retreat, I'll keep my mouth shut.”
“We'll see about that later. After I try my last resort.”
Attacking an impregnable fortress head-on is foolish. In times like these, you have to hide in a Trojan Horse to get inside. My mind made up, I shot to my feet. As I pushed through the bushes and revealed myself, the tips of the soldiers' spears all turned toward me.
Damn, they're fast. I raised both hands to show I wouldn't resist.
“Wait a moment. I'm a messenger, here with their demands….”
“Enemy. Kill.”
“I said wait! Killing someone with their hands up is against the rules! I surrender!”
So much for a Trojan Horse. They immediately thrust their blades at me. I jumped back, but the soldiers just kept repeating the same words as they closed in.
“Enemy. Kill.”
“Enemy. Kill.”
“Enemy. Kill.”
There wasn't a shred of reason in their eyes. Their voices were flat and monotonous. Could these soldiers be homunculi modeled after ordinary humans, not a Primarch?
Tsk. It seems their main forces really are focused on the Regressor and Tyr, seeing as there are no Primarchs here. The problem is, I can't even get past ordinary homunculi!
The spearheads drew closer. There was nowhere to run. Tents were already sprouting behind me, with more soldiers crawling out. What are these, human factories? People go into tents, why are people coming out of them?
A desperate situation, cornered on all sides, and my mind-reading was useless. Even if I took down a few, I'd be crushed by the sheer numbers that followed.
But I prepared for this. The ultimate Trojan Horse.
I played my final card, calling out at the top of my lungs.
“Elric! Come out! I have something to discuss with you formally!”
My shout was in vain, my voice quickly drowned out by the clatter of the soldiers' armor. The only escape route was the hole in the ground.
…She's not going to come out. If he'd just give up now, I could still save him….
Just as the sole spectator was feeling a pang of pity.
“—Stop.”
A single, quiet command. The soldiers who heard it froze. A completely different reaction from when I had shouted.
The soldiers stopped, literally like statues. From among them, ‘Elric’ parted their ranks and slowly walked forward.
Her brilliant golden hair, like molten gold, was tied in a ponytail, and her body was wrapped in form-fitting clothes that didn't flutter. Wearing leather gloves and boots, ‘Elric’ stared at me with sharp eyes, as if dissecting me.
“How tiresome. Do you have no common sense?”
…Huh? The Goldenarch?
If even Peru was fooled, the homunculi would be too. They would think she was the real thing. Especially the mindless ones.
I smiled as if I'd been waiting for this and said.
“Is there such a thing as common sense in war? What's important is what we do from here.”
“…Hmph. All talk. Everyone, step aside.”
As ‘Elric’ waved her hand dismissively, the soldiers before her moved in perfect unison to open a path. A path wide enough for two people opened between the densely packed soldiers. ‘Elric’ began to walk down it with a dignified stride. I followed close behind.
Meanwhile, Peru was stunned by the absurd situation.
…Impossible. She's just taking an intruder in so easily? The Goldenarch?
It wasn't impossible. Who could know the true intentions of the Golden Palace? Even I, a mind-reader, didn't know. It was possible the Goldenarch had her own reasons for taking me in.
But no matter how you looked at it, it was irrational. To prepare for war by mass-producing weapons and sending out armed homunculi, while simultaneously bringing a potential enemy into the heart of your base.
…Don't tell me?
It seemed she'd finally caught on, but it was too late. We had already passed the lined-up soldiers and reached the inner camp….
“…Your Majesty?”
…because we were standing before the Golden Lord.
The Golden Lord was about to enter a large tent. He was carrying a large sheet of paper, which looked like a map or a blueprint.
He looked back and forth between the tent and us, his face bewildered.
“Weren't you just inside the tent a moment ago? No, more importantly, who is that?”
The golden bell hanging at his waist rang urgently, as if reflecting his state of mind. ‘Elric's’ gaze briefly flickered toward it.
The golden bell Father mentioned. Is that the Golden Lord? The one who adores King Elric of the Golden Empire?
Reading ‘Elric's’ thoughts, I gave a small nod of confirmation. ‘Elric’ quickly observed the Golden Lord and his surroundings, her thoughts continuing.
Hmm~. Doesn't he look a little too… fresh to be the Golden Lord? I don't think that's his real form. Even ‘I’ find it a little creepy~.
You transform into all sorts of things. Isn't this a case of hating your own kind?
The ‘Elric’ who brought me here was, of course, Hilde. I had described Elric's appearance to Hilde and asked her to transform into her. I had never met Elric in person, but Hilde succeeded in transforming into her based on my description alone.
Hilde herself grumbled that she couldn't get a read on the character while transforming, but what did it matter? All she had to do was lower the Golden Lord's guard.
Hilde improvised a line to fit the situation and the Golden Lord's words.
“Demo. Greet him. This is someone you should know.”
“Me, Your Majesty?”
“Yes. He is….”
Hilde, trying to immerse herself in the role of ‘Elric’, pointed at me and chose her words.
Father asked me to act like a master with her favorite disciple~. But as expected, it's hard to imitate someone I've never seen, you know? There's a limit to improvisation~.
You don't have to be perfect. Just distract him for a moment. Long enough for me to pickpocket that golden bell.
Come on. Hurry. Say something! Anything to let me get closer to the Golden Lord naturally!
Finally settling on a concept, Hilde leaned against my shoulder. She placed her clasped hands on my shoulder and pressed my arm against her chest. Tilting her head toward me, her expression softened.
Uh, wait.
Before I could stop her, Hilde voiced her thought.
“He is the man who will be my husband.”
“…Whaaat?! What, that's absurd!”
I told you to lower his guard, not raise it! He's glaring at me like he wants to kill me! And more importantly, won't he suspect your identity if you say something so out of character?!
Clank, clank. Soldiers in golden armor stepped out from behind him. Such a random appearance at this timing. I wasn't sure, but they seemed to be a manifestation of the Golden Lord's rage. He was probably thinking of gutting me with those swords if things went south. Hilde, are you trying to get me killed?
The Golden Lord was glaring at me so fiercely it looked like sparks would fly from his eyes. He immediately prostrated himself and cried out.
“P-Please, reconsider, Your Majesty! A vagrant from who-knows-where as your husband! It's preposterous!”
“Do you truly think it's preposterous?”
‘Elric’ wore a bewitching smile. She gently pushed against me with her body, rubbing her cheek against mine as if showing me off. As the Golden Lord gritted his teeth, ‘Elric’ whispered like a devil, her expression no longer resembling Elric at all.
“You must have expected a day like this would come.”
“Pardon?”
“That the only one worthy of me, the noblest in this land, is a man as noble as myself. But what man in this world could possibly be worthy of this body?”
Hoh. So that's it. Now I see what Hilde is thinking.
To be so obsessed means, in other words, that he's worried about her being taken away. Nightmares are more memorable than sweet dreams! Shall I act out the most terrible scenario the Golden Lord can imagine?
A perfectionist in a different sense. Rather than do a half-assed job, she'll give a perfect performance, even if it's the opposite of what I wanted.
Tch. I didn't expect this. Artistry is a difficult thing. I guess I'll play along for now. Like some blond punk, I blatantly groped ‘Elric's’ waist, acting just like Hilde.
“My. Isn't this a bit too explicit in front of your disciple? You're quite mischievous, Your Majesty.”
“Ah… Are you one to talk?”
Letting out a moan, 'Elric' looked for all the world like a girl in love.
No, don't overdo it. I'm not some punk trying to toy with her. I really think the Golden Lord is going to kill me. Me!
But thanks to her, he'd at least dropped his suspicion. The Golden Lord might hate me right now, but he wasn't doubting Hilde. Good, if I can just get a little closer like this….
“…Golden Lord. She is a fake!”
But while the Golden Lord might be fooled, Peru was not. She had already witnessed Hilde's transformation ability.
“What…?”
“…You mustn't be deceived! She is someone else transformed into the Goldenarch! The real Goldenarch would never speak like that!”
Peru offered her earnest counsel to the Golden Lord. Only then did he look at Hilde with suspicion. And now, the differences were glaringly obvious.
Because the Golden Lord knew Elric inside and out—enough to ‘alchemize’ her.
The illusion shatters. No, it's painted over.
His Elric doesn't speak like that.
His Elric doesn't act like that.
His Elric would not rejoice in another man's arms. Therefore, that is a fake.
A sharp clang, like something shattering, rang out. At the same time, the flap of the tent next to the Golden Lord was thrown open, and the real Elric… if you could call her that, anyway, his Elric, rushed out.
“Demo! That is not me! It's a fake disguised as me!”
But… the Golden Lord's eyes never left ‘Elric’.
Perhaps the Golden Lord had known all along. That the world around him was a lie, and that the real world was one that did not bend to his will. That might be why he couldn't tear his eyes away from this new version of ‘Elric’, why he hadn't allowed the real Elric to appear.
Hilde's performance as Elric must have been that shocking. Enough to make the Golden Lord briefly step out of the world he had confined himself to.
And so… just for a moment. I could read his thoughts.
“You! As I thought…!”
The Golden Lord, coming to his senses, tried to rise but froze. A thin, weak force was pulling at him.
The 9 of Spades. Tree of Genesis. An Idol of the Divine obtained from observing Nevida, the power of a druid. Vines, grown from the card as a seed, held the Golden Lord for an instant. They broke quickly, but it bought me time. In that brief moment, Hilde shoved the Golden Lord's soldiers aside, clearing a path.
One step with trickery. One step with Earth Art. One step with Hilde's acting. And one step with the vines.
Each one was trivial, but together, they were enough to reach the Golden Lord. Thanks to using every means at my disposal, my hand finally reached the Golden Lord, and in it….
The golden bell, ringing with a clear sound, was resonating with me.