part0011

Like wildfire, the news regarding the revelation of the Seven Gods quickly spread throughout the kingdom. Rumors and speculation regarding the sealed demon and ‘The One Who Traveled Through Time’ spread among the masses. People were frequently heard discussing it inside taverns.

King Alvis issued an order for all of the nobles and officials of the kingdom to gather at the capital to discuss the revelation by the Seven Gods.

From Barons to Dukes, from administrative officials to lords—even the nobles and officials who didn’t belong to any factions were summoned by the crown. All of them were directed to come to the capital straightaway.

“Your Grace, we’ve arrived,” said the coachman.

Duke Drakus pulled open the window of the carriage and looked outside. A beautiful maze garden filled with flowers. A large stone fountain. Over a hundred royal guards were patrolling the area.

They’d arrived at the gates of the royal palace.

Looking at the palace, the duke was once again reminded of the awarding ceremony, after their victory against the Empire. Even now, he couldn’t believe that that devil had managed to amass all of those achievements. He still couldn’t understand how his exiled son had managed to lead his troops to victory.

For the past several months, Duke Drakus had been asking himself if exiling that intemperate, vindictive demon had been the right decision.

“Lui,” the duke said to the young man sitting next to him. “What do you think of your brother?”

Lui, who’d been mostly silent throughout their journey to the capital, was surprised by the words of his father. It was the first time in several years that the duke had used the word ‘brother.’

A smile slowly formed on Lui’s face. “He’s changed a lot. My little brother has grown up.”

Duke Drakus knew that brat had indeed changed a lot, although he didn’t know what had caused such a massive change to such an incompetent individual.

Was it the alleged ‘master’ he’d heard about?

No, even if he had the late Algrove Aria as his teacher, it was impossible for someone so incompetent to become that proficient in magic and the sword. Moreover, based on his intel, it seemed that his son born from a concubine was also knowledgeable of curses—going as far as contributing to the lifting of the curse of the royal family.

How did he learn all of these things? Who taught him? And how did he manage to gather all of this knowledge and incorporate it into battle?

He had a lot of questions, and even with his information network, the duke couldn’t arrive at an answer.

The two of them disembarked from the carriage. Two royal guards approached and escorted them inside the royal palace. Upon entering the throne room, the noisy chatters of the nobles present inside dwindled. They all looked at the opened door, particularly at the two renowned figures of the kingdom that had just entered.

Looking around, Duke Drakus realized that the king wasn’t here yet. But Duke Youchester—the youngest duke who rarely attended gatherings—was present.

Lancaster Kelvin openly glared at Lui Marcus, while Kalavinka Kelvin—the genius of the navy—was looking at the floor, avoiding the gaze of other people. It was as though he wanted to leave as soon as possible.

‘Even Kalavinka was invited by His Majesty, it seems?’ thought the duke. He found it quite peculiar.

A brown-skinned middle-aged man greeted the duke. “It’s been a while, Duke Drakus.”

“Indeed, Lord Chase.” Duke Drakus, with an air befitting his rank, nodded. “I heard that Golden Wheat City had an abundant harvest recently.”

Lord Chase smiled. “Now that there’s no longer any fear of the Black Famine, we’ve proactively started expanding the lands for cultivation,” he said. “As long as the Goddess of Harvest permits it, I expect our yield to grow more and more as years pass by.”

Now that he’d thought of it, Duke Drakus remembered that it was his wayward son who’d come up with the method of dealing with those pesky swarms.

The number of achievements he’d amassed last year could no longer be counted in one hand.

“I heard that even the Empire started employing the same method our kingdom used to cull those insects. As expected of the Emperor. His information network even reaches deep within our kingdom,” said Lord Chase.

“The Emperor planted several spies among our ranks. You heard what happened to Lancaster Kelvin, right?”

Lord Chase and Duke Drakus glanced at Lancaster Kelvin, who was currently boasting about his recently-fortified rock castle to the members of the Kelvin Faction.

“I remember the tragedy that befell him. The spy planted by General Rizel.” Lord Chase nodded. “To think that his trusted right-hand man was a mole from the Empire.”

“We’ve been weeding out all possible spies in our duchy after we heard what happened to Lancaster. I suggest that you do the same, Lord Chase.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Lord Chase noticed the nobles belonging to the Marcus Faction approaching them from a distance. He politely smiled and lightly bowed his head. “Then, I’ll have to excuse myself, Duke Drakus.”

Unlike Duke Drakus, who valued talent over lineage, most of the members of his faction held disdain over those of common origin. It was understandable that Lord Chase, a commoner who rose to the rank of lord of a major city, did not wish to associate with them.

After Lord Chase left, Duke Drakus soon found himself surrounded by the nobles under his faction. A bunch of yes men who incessantly flapped their mouths in their attempts to cajole him.

After Duke Kelvin was imprisoned in the dungeons, the balance in power among the factions tilted to the other side. Nobles started leaving the Kelvin Faction one by one.

Right now, the strongest faction in the kingdom was undoubtedly the Royal Faction, followed by the Marcus Faction. Although the nobles under Duke Youchester were incredibly loyal, they numbered less than a dozen and held very little military might. Furthermore, Duke Youchester apparently held no desire for the throne; he even declared that he would unconditionally support whoever won the competition.

There was no doubt that his son, Lui Marcus, currently held the highest chance of ascending the throne.

“The embodiment of God Nruz. The heart of the sun. His Majesty, King Alvis Lukas VI has arrived. Everyone, show your respect.”

The voice of the Grand Chamberlain echoed in the throne room. The door opened and King Alvis, who looked comparatively younger and healthier than before, started walking toward the throne. Lady Ropianna, Marquis Carlos, and Viscount Lakian followed behind.

Silence fell as the nobles and officials in the throne room lowered their heads.

King Alvis sat on the throne and said in a voice filled with vigor, “You may raise your heads.”

The nobles looked at the king sitting on the throne. Although they’d heard the rumors, they were still surprised upon seeing the king in person. Indeed, the king looked vibrant. The small purplish-black spots that used to cover portions of his skin had vanished, and there was an indescribable strength in his eyes. It was hard to believe that this was the same old man who fainted at the celebratory banquet a year ago.

Standing to the king’s right was the retired general, Marquis Carlos. And to his left was the Seer, Lady Ropianna. A step below him stood the Grand Chamberlain.

“First, I must thank everyone for coming here at short notice.” The king’s gaze swept through everyone present. “All of you have probably heard by now. The revelation we received more than a week ago from the Seven Gods.”

It was the hottest topic in the kingdom right now. The reason even Duke Drakus hurriedly came despite the short notice from the crown.

“According to the revelation, the demon sealed in the ice prison has woken from its slumber. After combing the archives and the ancient records in the royal library, we’ve come to the conclusion that the Gods were referring to the Demon Lord Barkuvara. One of the strongest demons to have ever roamed this land. And the only demon to have attained the status of an immortal.

“More than a thousand years ago, this very same demon was said to be the cause of the collapse of the largest and strongest human Empire in history. A demon that killed more than half the population of mankind.”

The nobles and officials were stricken with horror. They’d never imagined that the demon of the revelation would be such a terrifying being.

“K-Killed more than half the population of humans?” mumbled one of the nobles.

“And of the tens of millions of humans killed that time, at least a tenth of them were magicians,” added King Alvis.

Marquis Carlos’ expression turned grim. Even Lady Ropianna showed subtle signs of unease.

“It’s understandable that most of you aren’t aware of this, since this event happened over a millennium ago, and most of the records from that time were destroyed by the demons.”

King Alvis paused, looked at everyone in the room, and said, “I hope that this is enough for everyone to understand the gravity of the situation. An Empire with hundreds of thousands of magicians under its command fell under the hands of this demon. Imagine what would happen if it decided to lay its hands on our kingdom.”

The entire kingdom would be annihilated.

This was the only answer they could come up with.

Even Wizzert City would be powerless before such a powerful being.

“But, Your Majesty!” said one of the officials. “I’m certain that it’s been hundreds of years since a demon was last seen on this continent—if the records are true at all! How certain are we that this so-called Immortal Demon will show up on our doorst—”

“The Gods never lie,” interjected the king.

The high-ranking priests glared at the official who questioned the revelation. Seeing those glares, the official lowered his head and said, “O-Of course. Apologies, Your Majesty.”

“The Gods have no reason to lie to us mortals. Did everyone forget the latter part of the revelation? Seek the help of the one who traveled through time. It’s the only way for our nation—for the human race—to survive,” said the king. “Ropianna.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Lady Ropianna stepped forward and amplified her raspy voice using magic, enabling even those at the back to hear it. “Three days ago, I’ve received divination from the Water God. She left two important messages.”

Lady Ropianna’s gaze moved toward the timid-looking boy standing next to Lancaster Kelvin.

“First, we should spare no effort in fortifying the ports of the kingdom. And second, we should immediately seek contact with the one who traveled through time. These were the words of the Water God.”

Fortify the ports of the kingdom?

The quick-witted ones realized what it meant straightaway.

“I believe that the demons will come from the west, from the direction of the Mullgray Islands,” said the Seer. “This is why we should fortify the ports and naval bases at once.”

Hearing this, the gaze of nobles and officials moved toward Kalavinka Kelvin, the undefeated admiral of the kingdom’s naval forces. Realizing that he’d become the center of attention, Kalavinka lowered his head and his eyes behind his hair.

“Kalavinka,” King Alvis said gently.

“Y-Yes, Your Majesty?”

“We’ll provide you with as many men and resources as possible. I know this is probably too much for someone so young to bear on his own, but you’re the most knowledgeable regarding naval warfare in this room. Rest assured, we shall assist you as much as we can.”

The king was declaring that the nobles should fully support this kid from now on, no matter what. Hearing this, a smile slowly formed on the faces of those who belonged to the Kelvin Faction. They hadn’t expected the royal family to grant this much power to Kalavinka Kelvin.

“Can you do it?” said the king.

There were several seconds of silence.

Kalavinka was about to shake his head when Lancaster whispered, “Don’t you dare refuse this opportunity. Father will be sure to hear of this.”

Kalavinka swallowed the lump in his throat. He looked at the nobles around him. All of them were looking at him with eyes filled with expectation.

Eventually, Kalavinka conceded. “Y-Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Thank you.” The king said to the Grand Chamberlain, “Lakian, assign several guards to protect Kalavinka. Issue a recruitment notice for the ports under the Kelvin Duchy. We shall proceed with the fortification of the naval bases right away.”

“I shall do so at once, Your Majesty.”

“Everyone present shall contribute to the fortification of the naval bases,” declared the King, his voice loud and clear. “It doesn’t matter if you belong to an opposing faction. There shall be no exceptions.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

King Alvis heaved a sigh of relief. He’d managed to take care of the most urgent matter for now.

“My King, the Seer said that we should immediately make contact with the one who traveled through time. But how are we supposed to… achieve that? We don’t even know if we’re looking for a human,” said one of the ministers.

“We’ve already sent Farsight and several soldiers to investigate the anomaly seen above the Lake of Full Moon. We believe it should give us a proper lead in the investigation,” said the king. “And think about it. If this person mentioned in the revelation is powerful enough to prevent the destruction of our kingdom, he should probably be already aware that we’re looking for him right now. Let us hope that eventually, this person will initiate contact with us.”

After the meeting in the throne room, King Alvis summoned Duke Drakus and Lui Marcus into his sitting room.

Duke Drakus had expected Duke Youchester to be present, but to his surprise, it seemed that only he and his son had been invited.

“Welcome,” said King Alvis. He was no longer wearing his mantle and the crown no longer adorned his head. He wore a simple tunic with minimal golden embroidery. “Have a seat. I’ve prepared tea.”

King Alvis poured tea into the cups and handed it to his guests. “It’s chamomile. I hope it suits your tastes.”

Duke Drakus and Lui respectfully accepted the tea handed to them by His Majesty. After the king was finally seated, the two of them sat down.

“How is it?” said King Alvis.

“It’s delicious, Your Majesty,” said Lui.

“Indeed,” said the duke.

King Alvis smiled gently. “This tea is great in soothing the body. The perfect tea for the evening, don’t you agree?”

The king gently placed his cup on the table. “The two of you are probably wondering why I summoned you here. Duke Drakus, have you heard anything recently from Lark Marcus?”

The Duke stiffened. He hadn’t expected to hear that name here, of all places.

He quickly regained his composure and said, “I haven’t spoken with him, since he was exiled to that town, Your Majesty.”

“I see. How about you, Lui?”

Lui noticed that his father was observing him carefully through the corner of his eye. Still, he truthfully replied, “We’ve spoken since the Coalition Army disbanded, Your Majesty. Back then, I promised to visit him once I’ve finished all of my tasks in the duchy.”

“Coalition Army,” the king stroked his beard. “That was last year.”

Seeing the king in deep thought, the duke said, frowning, “Did that brat do something shameful and repulsive again, Your Majesty?”

King Alvis shook his head. “No, no. I’m just wondering… as his father,” he turned his gaze to Lui Marcus, “and as his brother. Did you notice any… peculiar changes in him recently?”

Although Duke Drakus and Lui tried to hide it, the king noticed the subtle changes in their expressions. It was apparent that they’d noticed the drastic changes that Lark Marcus had undergone in the past several months.

“Changes?” said the duke.

King Alvis looked the duke straight in the eyes. “More than a week ago, your son, Lark Marcus, single-handedly annihilated a thirty-thousand strong monster horde.”

The eyes of Duke Drakus and Lui widened. They’d heard the news that Lion City was almost overrun by monsters over a week ago. But they’d never expected the unknown magician who killed all of the monsters was Lark Marcus.

“Daltos, the commander of the soldiers of Lion City, testified that it was the Lord of Blackstone Town who killed all of those monsters. Drakus, I hope you won’t mind the question of this old man. The Lark Marcus that you knew… The son you exiled to that small town. Would he be capable of annihilating all of those monsters on his own, in such a short period of time?”

Duke Drakus opened his mouth but failed to utter a response. He finally realized why the King had summoned him and Lui to this room.

“Lark Marcus. That young man was even knowledgeable enough to sever the curse that was running through the royal family for generations.”

“Drakus,” said the king. “Ropianna and I believe that your son is the one mentioned in the revelation of the Seven Gods.”