Chapter 413: The Fall of Kronos (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 413: The Fall of Kronos (4)
It was a gloomy chamber.
Marquis Memphis walked toward the center of the vast, empty space like a man possessed. This was a place where no one but the Emperor of Kronos was permitted entry. Resting on a table in the middle of the room was a well-preserved piece of parchment. In truth, Memphis had always been curious. He was practically the only person alive who knew of this secret room's existence, and there had been countless times he had wanted to ask what the Emperor of Kronos did in here.
Instinctively, he reached out and caressed the parchment.
Since there was no longer anyone here to stop him, he naturally began to read its contents.
[In the ancient past, the gate of the world opened. The freezing energy that flowed from it locked the world in ice, and the disaster left in its wake persisted for eternity. God spoke: one day, one who acts on His behalf shall appear to resolve the world's plight. However, if that moment is missed, the world will never escape the abyss of despair.]
It was an oracle.
Marquis Memphis could not comprehend its meaning.
Since he hadn't known of Alexander's true existence from the beginning, he didn't realize that the "disaster left behind" referred to Alexander himself. Doubts clouded his mind. What did this oracle mean? What had the Emperor of Kronos—no, Alexander—tried to achieve by reflecting on these words countless times?
Right then.
Fssss.
A change occurred on the parchment.
The letters dissolved, rearranging themselves to reveal an entirely different message.
[The disaster has become reality. The Gate of Darkness shall open. It is an unavoidable fate, and just because it is not yet visible before your eyes does not mean nothing is happening. Mortals, be on guard. Prepare. Struggle. On the day the pitch-black darkness descends upon the world, humanity will face an unprecedented catastrophe.]
"...The Gate of Darkness."
His pupils trembled.
The Gate of Darkness.
The moment he read those words, a realization flashed through Marquis Memphis's mind.
The Demon Realm.
Alexander had accepted dark mana. That meant he served the ruler of the Demon Realm. Historically, the Gate of Darkness referred to the passage connecting the Earthly World to the Demon Realm. If so, the meaning of the oracle was clear. Alexander had sought to summon the Demon King. If the entities of darkness descended upon this world, all previous conflicts would become utterly meaningless.
Every single human would be slaughtered.
In the face of such an overwhelming catastrophe, even Roman Dmitry would be nothing more than a mere mortal.
No, this is an opportunity for me. If I can trace Alexander's footsteps and meet the ruler of the Demon Realm, I can become a ruler of the new world in exchange for my cooperation. Since they accepted Alexander, they will surely judge that they need help in the Earthly World. I can become the second Alexander.
His eyes flickered with burning ambition.
In any case, he was already pushed to the edge of a cliff.
He had thought he had no choice but to live the rest of his life in hiding, yet the oracle had declared this an unavoidable catastrophe. The suffocating anxiety in his chest finally seemed to ease. Just when he thought everything was completely over, Marquis Memphis had found an unexpected breakthrough.
However, his hope did not last long.
Slam!
"Marquis Memphis! R-Roman Dmitry has found the location of the secret room!"
A knight burst in with the report.
At the sight of the pale-faced knight delivering the news, Marquis Memphis's heart sank to the pit of his stomach.
* * *
The knights' resistance was futile.
The men who had rushed forward to block the entrance at all costs collapsed, spraying blood after exchanging only a few blows. The floor was quickly drenched in crimson. Forced to retreat by the sight of their motionless comrades, the remaining knights were ultimately trapped in the dead-end secret room.
Behind them, Marquis Memphis trembled violently.
Pale-faced and consumed by anxiety, his pupils shook as he spotted a certain figure emerging from the corridor.
Step, step.
"If you intended to run, you should have gone further. Isn't that right, Marquis Memphis?"
Roman Dmitry.
It was indeed him.
Memphis's blood ran cold. He could only part his lips soundlessly, unable to utter a single word in response.
It was over.
Roman Dmitry was an opponent against whom survival wasn't guaranteed even on a vast battlefield. Here, in this enclosed secret room, there was nowhere to run.
Anger and resentment welled up inside Memphis. Where on earth had things gone wrong? He, who had once been the most powerful figure serving the Emperor of Kronos, was now cornered at the edge of a precipice.
Right then.
"W-We surrender."
"We were only carrying out orders. We surrender, so please, spare our lives."
Memphis's knights threw down their weapons.
Even though Roman Dmitry hadn't offered them the chance to surrender, they read the room, knelt in unison, and bowed their heads. Marquis Memphis could only watch in sheer bewilderment. His face flushing red with rage, he bellowed at his men.
"How dare you bastards! You, who received the grace of the Memphis family, how could you—"
"Shut up!"
A knight cut him off.
Whipping his head around, the knight shot him a glare completely devoid of any respect for his master.
"We were never once loyal to you. I have no intention of dying while following a bastard like you. So, fuck it. If you want to die, die alone. Frankly, our only crime was following orders."
The knight looked back at Roman Dmitry. He pressed his forehead to the floor and pleaded for his life.
"I heard that those who surrender are spared. Please give us a chance to make up for our mistakes. If you spare our lives, we will offer everything of the Memphis family to Lord Roman Dmitry."
"Pathetic worms."
"Pardon...?"
The knight was taken aback. Raising his head at the unexpected response, he saw Roman Dmitry looking down at him with frigid eyes.
"The ones I grant opportunities to are those who had nothing to do with this situation. I give chances to those forced onto the battlefield against their will. But you, who fled all the way to this secret room just to save your own skins, are a different story. I do not reject turncoats. However, even betrayal has its proper timing."
"P-Please, mercy—Argh!"
Flash.
Blood splattered.
As Roman Dmitry cut down the foremost knight, the men behind him scrambled to pick up their dropped weapons to resist. But it was nothing more than a futile struggle. In that brief moment, Chris and Kevin lunged forward, severing their heads in a single stroke before they could even mount a defense.
The situation was cleared.
Only Marquis Memphis remained. As he stumbled backward, the parchment caught his eye.
"R-Roman Dmitry! I propose a deal!"
He raised a dagger.
Suddenly, he slashed the parchment to shreds.
After ruining it so that its contents could no longer be read, he glared at Roman Dmitry and spoke.
"Written on this parchment was a warning about a danger that will descend upon this world. If you spare my life, I will tell you everything I read. Roman Dmitry, this is no empty threat! If you do not prepare for this looming disaster, even you will not be able to handle it!"
His voice trembled violently.
He was grasping at straws.
Raising his dagger, he prayed and prayed in his heart that Roman Dmitry would accept this proposal.
But he also knew.
He knew that Roman Dmitry...
"I have no need for your help."
...was not a man who compromised.
A cold voice pierced his ears.
"Bind Marquis Memphis. He will not be executed here. He will be painfully put to death in front of everyone."
* * *
Dark clouds rolled in.
As a cool breeze swept away the metallic scent of blood, the citizens of Kronos, who had been hiding in their homes, began to head toward the square one by one. The war was already over. The news had spread as the soldiers surrendered, and Roman Dmitry had announced that he would publicly declare the end of the war in the square.
The square of Kronos was bustling with people.
On the execution platform before them, the high-ranking officials of Kronos, including Marquis Memphis, were kneeling in a row. Only then did reality truly sink in for the citizens.
Kronos had been defeated.
It was an unfamiliar sight, one they had never witnessed in their lives. Soon, Roman Dmitry parted the crowd and stepped onto the platform.
He came to a halt.
He looked down at the masses.
Even with a massive sea of people staring up at him, Roman Dmitry exuded an overwhelming presence that dominated them all.
"I stand here today to declare that the war has ended. The Kronos Empire has committed countless atrocities. The greed of individuals like Emperor Alexander of Kronos dyed the continent in darkness, and the wealth and prosperity you have enjoyed until now were built upon the blood and tears of other nations' citizens. From this moment on, I will change that foundation. Kronos will no longer live as it did before."
It was a declaration.
A forced command, not a gentle persuasion.
The people's eyes wavered. Although they knew reality would change because they had lost the war, accepting that change was never an easy matter.
"The nation I intend to build from now on will follow clear laws. You will not be rejected simply because you are from Kronos, nor will personal feelings ever stand above the law. This is a system that no one can violate. Even if I myself break the law, I will be punished in front of everyone."
He raised his voice. Amidst the impending tide of change, Roman Dmitry spoke of a new world.
"If you wish to live as you did before, leave my shadow. I have absolutely no intention of forcing you into the world we will build anew on this land. However, if you wish to follow my system, forget all of your past glory. If you faithfully fulfill your roles in your respective places, I will gladly accept you as my people."
The crowd held their breath.
No one refuted him.
They had no choice but to submit to the massive tide, recognizing Roman Dmitry as their new leader.
He...
...had said he would not reject them.
He didn't say he would punish them for the atrocities Kronos had committed; rather, he offered them a chance to live as his new citizens. The end of the defeated was always miserable. While those who had ruled over others under the old power structure might not welcome this situation, Roman Dmitry's words offered new hope to the common folk—those who would always remain in their places regardless of how the world changed.
Such was the nature of the common people.
They were neither good nor evil; they were simply beings who lived the lives given to them.
The stage was set.
Now, it was time to bring things to a close.
Roman Dmitry shouted.
"We shall now proceed with the executions!"
* * *
The executions were carried out in silence.
There was no one cheering.
Nor was there anyone grieving.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd gathered in the square, those forced onto the execution platform accepted their deaths with grim faces.
Thud.
Thump.
Roll.
On the blood-soaked wood, another head rolled across the ground.
He had been an active follower of Marquis Memphis, and as the price for his loyalty, he had ended up on this chopping block. The executions proceeded in order. When a person was dragged forward, they would sob before meeting their end. The moment their head was severed, before the blood could even dry, another person would be roughly dragged out.
Thud.
Thud, thud, thud.
It was the sound of death.
Although the executioner had already killed several people, he continued his duty with an indifferent expression.
The era of Kronos was drawing to a close. This was a nation known as one of the two great pillars alongside Valhalla, the undisputed strongest power on the continent that had produced Alexander, the creator of Aura. People had believed that the day would come when Kronos would conquer the entire continent, but it met a futile end that made its past glory pale in comparison.
One by one, the number of people to be executed dwindled.
Beneath the platform, headless corpses were busily carried away. Before long, only Marquis Memphis remained.
He squeezed his eyes shut.
While waiting for his turn, he had accepted his death.
Although he regretted ending his life this way, there was nothing left for him to choose.
Right then.
Roman Dmitry spoke.
"Marquis Memphis is the one who directly communicated with Alexander and spearheaded the atrocities committed by Kronos. He will not be executed immediately. He will be bound to this execution platform to reflect on his miserable reality countless times. In this space, watched by everyone, he will slowly wither and die. That is the punishment I bestow upon Marquis Memphis."
"What do you mean by that?!"
He snapped his head up.
This was not what he expected.
He had barely managed to accept his death, yet Roman Dmitry was handing down an even crueler punishment.
"Just kill me! I am a man who once ruled this country! Do not humiliate me! Sever my head just like the others!"
He screamed in sheer desperation.
At that, Roman Dmitry looked down at him.
Crouching down to meet Marquis Memphis's gaze, he whispered in a quiet voice so the crowd couldn't hear.
"There are two reasons why I am not killing you right away. First, it is to give a choice to those who followed you but did not climb this execution platform. If they plot a scheme to rescue you in a space watched by everyone, I will root them out and eradicate them completely. However, if they suppress their anger despite having the opportunity, they will never dare to bare their teeth even if another chance arises."
It was intentional.
An open space.
He would intentionally loosen security so that anyone could approach Marquis Memphis if they set their minds to it.
"Second, it is to keep the target of the people's wrath within arm's reach. The people harbor immense ill will toward you. If those called the rulers of this nation had not been consumed by ugly desires, the citizens of Kronos would not have had to lose their families. If anyone attempts to harm you in violation of the laws I have set, I will make an example of them to prove what kind of existence I am. But if, according to the punishment I have decreed, the day comes when you wither away in loneliness here, untouched by anyone..."
He smiled.
To Marquis Memphis, that smile looked like that of a devil.
"This nation will fall completely under my control."