Chapter 157 : Chapter 157
Chapter 157 : Supreme King
The next morning came.
As promised with Guar, I headed to the front of the Lord's mansion with the special task force members.
In front of the mansion we arrived at, a quite luxurious procession was already waiting.
Including the guards and attendants, there must have been easily over fifty people at a rough guess.
“You’re here, Vell.”
Guar, dressed in much more comfortable attire, welcomed me while puffing on a cigar.
“Are we departing right away?”
“That is the plan. I don’t think there’s anything good about delaying.”
“Seeing you in a hurry, it seems all the checks are finished.”
At that, Guar nodded slightly.
“……Yes. The tricks you mentioned were also set up in Biarritz. We are removing them as we check, but given the scale, it will be impossible to remove them completely.”
As expected, it seemed the magic circles set up by the Supreme King were laid out across the entire city of Biarritz as well.
Perhaps because of that, a certain determination could be felt in Guar's expression.
“We must stop the Supreme King, whatever it takes.”
Guar quietly spoke of the duty he had to do now as the Lord of Biarritz.
“My opinion is the same on that part.”
“By the way, there is one strange thing. Why are you trying to stop the Supreme King? Do you have a reason to do so?”
“Well.”
Honestly speaking, I hadn't thought about that part deeply.
Just that, since something bothersome was happening right before my eyes, I simply thought I should vaguely stop it.
Strictly speaking, this wasn't much different from when I was Cain.
“Because it bothered me.”
“Haha, that is also just like you.”
Guar extinguished the cigar.
“Let’s depart now. Will you ride a horse? Or a carriage?”
“I’ll go by horse. If the whole group rides in the carriage, it’ll spoil them.”
“Haha! An amusing remark. Then you can take the horses over there.”
“Thank you for preparing them.”
“What is there to thank for this much?”
As I turned my steps back to the group, Conlan looked at me with an absurd gaze first.
“……You really were acquaintances with the Lord of Biarritz. Just how do you know him?”
“I told you so.”
“Who would believe that? I thought you were just saying it.”
Albino cut in.
“What did you talk about?”
“Just stories about how the world works?”
“Don’t say something that isn’t even funny. I don’t know how close you are with the Lord of Biarritz, but are you asking us to believe that a figure as high as a Lord was leisurely chatting about trivial things with you?”
“What else can I do?”
Although the special task force members and I were traveling together, meeting the Supreme King would be done only by me and Guar.
There was no need to tell them the story about meeting the Supreme King.
“Just know it as that. You guys followed me on your own whim in the first place.”
“If you say that, I have nothing to say but…… Sigh, forget it.”
“Good thinking. Instead of asking useless questions, worry about how not to get hit more in the spar.”
“……You, someday I’m going to give you a big blow.”
“I’m looking forward to it.”
The journey to meet the Supreme King began in earnest.
***
The place where the Supreme King issued the mobilization order was the capital of the Arkendale Kingdom, which could be seen as the center of the Eastern Union.
To go from Biarritz to the Arkendale Kingdom, we had to pass through the Kendel Grassland, also called the Great Grassland.
The name of the Arkendale Kingdom was also taken from this very Kendel Grassland, and this grassland boasted a vast green expanse befitting the alias of Great Grassland.
Normally, demonic beasts or bands of bandits would have appeared while passing through the Kendel Grassland, but since the Lord of Biarritz was traveling in person and the knights were moving together, not only bands of bandits but even demonic beasts didn't dare to come near.
“Is it okay to be this relaxed, this?”
It was to the extent that Conlan spoke as if his body was itching.
“……Isn’t that guy Vell beating you up enough every night? Don’t tell me that’s not enough?”
“I don’t mean that, it’s just that this journey itself seems somewhat peaceful. Makes me wonder if this is okay.”
“Don’t say useless things, and just think about how to land a blow on that guy Vell at night.”
“If only you do well, we can do it, you useless white-haired bastard.”
“Wh-What?!”
Actually, after Albino stopped using magic almost entirely, it was true that he was somewhat pushed back compared to Conlan who was ahead in physical ability.
“What is a big guy who is ignorantly strong saying now…… Are you asking for a fight?”
“Do you think I’d be scared if you asked for a fight? You can’t even use magic anymore.”
“Okay, I’ll kill you today.”
“Anytime.”
Well, I had not the slightest intention of interfering in that fight that wasn't really a fight.
Amidst such peace, I quietly checked the Anonymous Bulletin Board.
As always, there was nothing better than this for killing time.
There might even be information about the Supreme King.
[Accessing Anonymous Bulletin Board.]
As soon as I entered the Anonymous Bulletin Board, what I saw was a post related to Akiro’s Labyrinth, one of the hot topics on the board.
-Is Plague Mask Gunman still in the labyrinth?
-Yea... Seems like he went up to the 3rd floor this time, got damn strong lol seems like he leveled up.
-Wow lol I thought he would when he became a guardian but he leveled up already? Seriously never going to Akiro’s Labyrinth again...
-Honestly you can only say this because you survived meeting Plague Mask Gunman, the ones who died can’t say anything right now lol
-Agreed lol
I thought the talk about the Plague Mask Gunman had died down for a while, but it seemed he became a topic again recently as he went up from the 2nd floor to the 3rd floor of the labyrinth.
And the next posts I saw were about the issue between the Empire and the Eastern Union, which could be seen as the biggest topic recently.
-Recently the Empire and the Eastern Union are really unusual.
-Is it because of that guy called the Supreme King?
-Yea seems so. But what exactly is the Supreme King’s identity? Is he a player?
-Nobody knows that lol
-Ah, what war damn it
-Public servants who rode the canned food coin knowing this would happen, hit like lol
-Please I wish the war stops and canned food prices crash. Agreed~
-Nope, it’s definitely war~ Canned food prices are gonna jump more than ten times~
Despite the approach of a war that might soon swallow the entire Lagna Continent, the Anonymous Bulletin Board users observed this situation as if watching a fire across the river.
No, in a way, it was natural.
If they were humans at the level of players, they would be able to protect their own bodies without difficulty, so even if a war broke out, they could just hide appropriately and come back when the war ended.
Therefore, even though there was talk about the war on the Anonymous Bulletin Board, there weren't many who felt a sense of crisis due to it.
-But no matter how I look at it, that guy called Supreme King is too suspicious...
-Hey, you too?
-Is there really a need for the Eastern Union to declare war on the Empire? Recently the Twilight Troupe acting up again is also bothering me.
-I agree too.
They are concerned, but just to that level.
That was the perspective the Anonymous Bulletin Board users had on this war.
‘Anyway, for general bulletin board users, this much would be the limit of information.’
Previously, CyberRekka9 had quietly revealed information about the Supreme King, but it was true that only the fact that a figure called the Supreme King existed was revealed.
Even I didn't have high expectations.
‘Hmm. As expected, there isn’t much gain from the Anonymous Bulletin Board.’
Then what remained was the Verification Board, which was maintained by a strict verification system.
[Accessing Verification Board.]
Unlike the Anonymous Bulletin Board, the Verification Board belongs to the side where post updates are very slow.
Perhaps because of that, there were only a few new posts on the Verification Board, which I must have been checking after quite a long time.
-Pugon: Seems like war is really going to happen. Everyone prepare.
-ImZappy: Is there a country that will hire this body if war breaks out? lol I’ll work cheap.
-Yuliana: Lightning Emperor, be quiet a bit.
‘There isn’t any particularly new information.’
I turned off the Verification Board.
As I rode the horse while checking the bulletin board, the magnificent fortress walls soaring beyond the horizon began to come into view before I knew it.
Finally, we arrived at Arkendale.
***
Huge fortress walls surrounded the city, and above the gate, the golden eagle crest, the symbol of the Arkendale Kingdom, was fluttering.
As we entered the fortress walls, a wide and clean main street unfolded before our eyes. The road was paved with cobblestones polished smoothly for the carriages the nobles rode.
Both sides of the road were lined with beautifully decorated buildings, 3 or 4 stories high.
Red bricks, windows with ornate patterns, and exotic pointed roofs created a unique atmosphere.
Various goods were displayed in the shops lined up between the buildings, and the sounds of merchants bargaining rang out noisily.
In the middle of the road, a magnificent fountain stretching toward the Imperial palace was situated.
In the center of the fountain stood an eagle statue with its wings spread wide, and clear water poured down in a vertical line from the eagle’s beak.
Beautifully carved benches were placed around the fountain, making it perfect for people to rest.
The Imperial palace seen in the distance was high as if piercing the sky, and was a magnificent building built of pure white marble.
Dragon statues shining in gold were placed on the roof of the Imperial palace. Trumpeters were positioned on the high towers surrounding the Imperial palace, and red flags fluttered.
Looking at that scene, Guar, who had gotten off the carriage before I knew it, said.
“There is still time until the mobilization order date, what will you do?”
“I will join later. Since it is the center of the Eastern Union, it seems there is a need to look around Arkendale a bit.”
If I discover the existence of magic circles set up by the Supreme King even here, then I could be certain that the Supreme King had installed magic circles throughout the entire Eastern Union.
“Is that so? Understood.”
Guar nodded and moved his steps into the carriage.
Like that, the carriage Guar rode left first, and I, left with the special task force members, said.
“Let’s get lodging first.”
“There was an inn that looked quite decent over there, how about that one?”
“Do as you please. You guys decided on the lodging as you pleased until now anyway.”
“Haha, alright.”
Conlan laughed heartily and took the lead toward the inn.
The moment I was about to follow behind them as well.
[Mr. Vell.]
Lion, who had been quiet until now, suddenly called me.
‘What’s wrong?’
[Someone, someone is calling me.]
‘What does that mean? Who is calling you?’
[……I don’t know. But I have to go. Somehow, I get that feeling.]
Could it be a coincidence that Lion showed such a reaction as soon as we entered Arkendale, where the Supreme King issued the mobilization order?
I was negative about it.
‘I’ll need to go check it out.’
Of course, there was a possibility that this was a trap, but in case of emergency, I was confident enough to extricate myself.
“You guys go to the inn first.”
“What about you, Vell?”
“I have a place to stop by for a moment.”
“Understood.”
Since it wasn't a day or two that I acted alone, the special task force members moved their steps toward the inn first.
‘Lead the way.’
[Yes. I will project it onto Mr. Vell’s eyes.]
Along with that, Spirit Magic made of Demonic energy projected a path onto my pupils.
The place the connected path headed to was very deep inside Arkendale.
Right, the Imperial palace of Arkendale.
‘The Imperial palace…….’
It was clear that there weren't many humans who would call me abruptly from a place like this.
I used Akiro's Ring to temporarily assimilate my appearance into the surrounding environment.
Having easily infiltrated the Imperial palace like that, I moved my steps following the path reflected in my eyes.
‘Is it here.’
The place I finally arrived at following the path was a certain palace inside the Imperial palace.
I didn't know what exactly their identity was to call me from a place like this, but I would find out soon enough.
Creak…….
I opened the palace door and entered, but not a single common guard was seen inside.
As if they had cleared it out in advance knowing a guest would come.
I moved my steps inside the palace following the path reflected in my pupils, and finally reached the end.
Waiting for me at that end was a silhouette whose whole body was obscured by shimmering Demonic energy.
“You came.”
A voice that sounded like scratching metal.
Dangerous Demonic energy emanating from the whole body.
A somewhat faint presence despite clearly being in this world.
The moment I saw that figure, I could feel it instinctively.
That person is the Supreme King.
“First time seeing you.”
The Supreme King looked at me.
“Postponer of Ruin.”