Chapter 182 : A Battle of Wits (2)
Chapter 182: A Battle of Wits (2)
Even though it was daytime, dense darkness had settled over the place.
It was the Grand Hall where the seat of the emperor, the very heart of the Dior Empire, was located.
A figure staggered into the hall, which was shrouded in pitch-black fog.
That figure was Malphas, who had fled after fighting Raion Dragonia.
At the same time, the area around the emperor’s seat—where nothing could be seen even an inch ahead—began to clear, as if the fog itself were lifting.
Emperor Lapis Dior emitted a chilling aura from his long, sharply slitted eyes.
“You dare appear in such a state. What happened?”
“……I came to see you in a most unseemly condition.”
Malphas waved his hand once through the air.
At the same time, his tattered clothes became neat, and even his wounds vanished.
“You said you were going to enjoy some leisure. Did you encounter an opponent who gave you trouble?”
“It became a little more taxing than expected. More importantly…… it seems you have almost completely devoured it at last.”
Malphas slightly raised his head, his eyes gleaming.
The corners of Lapis Dior’s lips stretched upward as he looked down.
Dark bluish veins surged over the emperor’s neck and face, once as pristine as white jade, and his gaze turned pitch-black.
“Heh heh heh……. You noticed?”
“I offer my congratulations. O Demon King!”
There was a being that had eroded Lapis Dior’s soul.
It was none other than the Demon King of Despair, Luseo Dicanderon—son of Harsideon, the Death God of Death, and a being who delighted in death and destruction.
“Not entirely yet. No matter how corrupted he has become, that bloodline was born with the blessing of Goddess Zigasis. Once he becomes completely my nourishment, no one will dare covet my life.”
“There is not much time left, then. Once again, I offer my congratulations. O Demon King.”
“Our amusement will not last much longer. Once this is finished, I will trample this land in darkness first. Summon the others as well.”
“I understand. O Demon King.”
With the order given, Malphas bowed deeply once and left the Grand Hall.
The massive doors of the hall opened and then closed.
Just as Malphas was about to move on, he paused.
“It has been a while. Decarsen Falkahn.”
As the name slipped out, a man stepped out from behind a distant pillar.
His pitch-black, beautiful hair swayed lightly, and his eyes were sharp enough to look as though they might cut someone’s throat at any moment.
“I thought you would be enjoying your leisure for quite some time, yet you returned quickly.”
“An unavoidable situation arose.”
“So you even went so far as to forcibly hide such serious injuries?”
In an instant, Decarsen Falkahn’s figure seemed to vanish, and then he tore at the space near Malphas as if ripping it apart with claws.
Chwaaaak—!
The severed space turned to dust and scattered into the air.
At the same time, Malphas’s true form was revealed, his entire body looking as though it had been slashed by countless sharp blades.
“A Count of the Demon Realm, yet in such a state. Did you think the Demon King would not notice your condition?”
“And you? Did you recover without even informing the Demon King after nearly dying, pretending it was all just leisure?”
“What……!”
Decarsen Falkahn had not told anyone about the injuries he had suffered not long ago.
Along with his pride, he knew all too well that the Demon King would not let it slide if he found out.
“Did you think no one would know?”
Boom—!
A black beam shot out from Decarsen’s palm, grazing past Malphas’s cheek.
In an instant, the corridor wall shattered into countless fragments that fell to the floor.
Despite it being a dangerous attack in its own way, Malphas did not even flinch.
“How did you know?”
“……Raion Dragonia.”
“You met him? Don’t tell me…….”
Even now, the sword marks etched across Malphas’s body were plainly visible.
Looking more closely, they were familiar traces.
Around the marks of the blade were scorch-like burns.
Yet demons were not normally burned by fire.
The only thing capable of burning them was the light of Goddess Zigasis.
“So you did meet him.”
“For a human, he was quite something.”
Malphas once again recalled the moment he had fought Raion.
At the instant he was sure he had won, he was met with a counterattack. Worse still, that single mistake led to a fatal blow, and in the end, fleeing was all he could do.
It was unbearably humiliating.
“Heh heh heh. Quite something? I wonder if he would consider you ‘quite something’.”
At the mockery, Malphas released pitch-black energy from his entire body.
The ground trembled, and the shattered stone fragments slowly rose into the air.
“Are you going to try it here? Do you think you can defeat me now?”
“What a ridiculous thing to say. Even if you weren’t in that sorry state, you could never defeat me.”
Kugugugung…!
As their auras collided, the corridor’s ceiling and pillars shook violently.
The aftermath was so intense that it spread beyond the corridor and reached the ground itself.
“Enough!”
Along with the suddenly resounding voice, a blade of pitch-black flames cut across the space between the two.
As the tangled flows of energy were severed, Decarsen Falkahn and Malphas recoiled in shock and hastily retreated.
“……Marbas.”
“Chh…….”
Between Decarsen’s quiet muttering, Malphas clicked his tongue.
The one who had revealed himself calmly sheathed the pitch-black sword that he might have drawn at some unknown point.
“This is the Grand Hall where the Demon King resides. How dare you cause such a disturbance here!”
“…….”
“Or would you like to try me instead?”
Neither of them responded to the question posed by the man called Marbas.
They merely stared silently for a moment before splitting to either side and walking away.
“How can those who serve the Demon King behave in such a manner…….”
As Marbas muttered, another presence emerged beside him as if a shadow were lifting.
She was a woman with alluring, long pitch-black hair, wearing a deeply cut black long dress that revealed skin in scattered places.
“Those two haven’t gotten along since the Demon Realm. You should understand that.”
“The Demon King is finally in the process of devouring a bloodline born with the goddess’s light. This is a time when we must be even more cautious. We should not be fighting among ourselves.”
The woman who had emerged from the shadows was Zelphinia, a Demon Realm Duke just like Marbas.
“Battles are meant to be fought against enemies.”
“That’s our instinct, isn’t it? You’re no different.”
“Instincts of destruction and slaughter—true enough. However, instincts that come before loyalty are no different from those of beasts.”
“Well…… that’s rather rigid of you, but I suppose you’re right.”
“More importantly, the Demon King has issued a summons. Call everyone here.”
“You want me to do it again?”
“Zelphinia, that’s what you’re good at.”
Hearing Marbas’s words, she let out a shallow sigh.
“Well, it can’t be helped. I’ll have to work a bit harder.”
After finishing their conversation there, the two returned to their respective positions.
As each day passed, the Mineta Kingdom gradually began to regain its original form.
Deborah, who had newly ascended to the throne, spent every day in constant turmoil as well.
Then one day…….
A messenger hawk flew in from Huffo Territory, near the border.
“Your Majesty! An envoy delegation has arrived!”
It was Duke Ambraze.
At his shout, Deborah set down the documents she had been reviewing for official duties.
Since she had already anticipated the situation, her expression remained calm.
“How far along are they?”
“They departed from Huffo Territory quite some time ago and are expected to arrive shortly.”
“They’re coming earlier than expected. Isn’t that a bit rushed?”
“Yes? Rushed—what do you mean by that……?”
It felt as though they were talking past each other.
Sensing this, Duke Ambraze asked cautiously.
“Surely you’re not thinking of the Canel Kingdom?”
“Aren’t they?”
“No! The envoy arriving now is not from just one place!”
“What? Then where from?”
“The Danas Federation, the Bachenan Holy Kingdom, and the Dior Empire!”
Not one, but three.
And not minor states either—these were powers classified as a federation and an empire, along with a holy kingdom that had followers spread across the entire continent.
Deborah was so shocked that she was left momentarily speechless, unsure how to respond.
“Why would they come to our Mineta Kingdom of all places?”
“I do not know that either. Envoys from all three nations crossed the border yesterday morning.”
“What about the size of the delegations? Huffo Territory must have gathered that information as well.”
The new lord of Huffo was one of Duke Ambraze’s people and was famous for being quick and efficient.
He was also skilled in intelligence analysis, which was why he had been deliberately placed as the lord of a border-adjacent territory.
“Forty-five from the Dior Empire, thirty-five from the Danas Federation, and twenty from the Bachenan Holy Kingdom. Each delegation is accompanied by a responsible leader—marquises and dukes, as well as a high priestess, subordinate knight commanders, and mages.”
Altogether, it came to exactly one hundred people.
At that report, Deborah let out an involuntary sigh.
“They showed no interest at all until now, so why this sudden move?”
Only recently had the Mineta Kingdom finally escaped its oppressive royal authority and begun to reclaim its original form.
There was no immediate event promising great profit. What could such massive powers possibly hope to gain that they would send envoys while the situation here was not even fully stabilized?
“We cannot refuse their visit. Moreover, the Bachenan Holy Kingdom is surely coming because of the forceful closure of their temples and the people of the holy kingdom currently staying here.”
High Priestess Marianne and Holy Knight Commander Larsen Heights.
Thanks to them, the Mineta Kingdom had been able to defeat the Pitch-Black Dragon summoned by the apostates.
Of course, even now, the true identity of that dragon had not been fully uncovered.
In order to determine the background of the apostates, Larsen Heights was continuing his investigation within the Mineta Royal Capital.
“It’s inevitable.”
“I will make preparations immediately.”
“Please ensure there are no shortcomings. However, we must also make sure that each nation’s envoys cannot wander around freely.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
Other kingdoms aside, the Dior Empire required special caution.
Deborah had personally seen the devastated territories while passing through imperial lands.
There was no way they had sent an envoy with purely good intentions from such a place.
‘They’re definitely after something.’
Since inheriting the throne, Deborah had persistently examined every issue as befitted a king.
No matter how easy something seemed, she never chose the easy path outright. She repeatedly considered whether there was a better approach, resolving matters one by one.
“Wait—then what about the Canel Kingdom? Is Raion arriving later than them?”
Originally, on the surface, Raion was supposed to enter as an envoy from the Canel Kingdom.
Yet only news of other nations had arrived, with no mention of them.
“For now, it seems we can only wait and see regarding Prince Raion and the others.”
“I understand. Sending a messenger hawk unnecessarily in this situation might cause misunderstandings.”
The Mineta Kingdom needed to be known as having reclaimed its royal authority through its own strength alone.