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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
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Deep within the Chaos Realm, in a nameless, ancient castle of unknown origin – a place the Demon Kings simply called the Demon King Castle – several Demon Kings were gathered.
This was the irregular “Demon King Council,” sometimes held annually, sometimes every fifty years. And this particular meeting was the first in two years, since Libero’s death.
“It seems everyone is the same as always.”
“Well, we are Demon Kings.”
Violet, after responding to the obvious statement, looked around. Her dull purple hair swayed like a curtain with each movement.
“So, is everyone here now?”
Attendance at the Demon King Council wasn’t mandatory. Respecting each other’s freedom was a fundamental rule among Demon Kings. Even so, the number of Demon Kings gathered in the castle this time was quite small.
“We’ve waited long enough. Let’s begin the connection.”
The reason for the low attendance was related to what Violet was about to do. As she touched the crystal ball she’d carefully brought from her room, a figure began to appear within it. It was a woman.
“Hello, Levia.”
The woman was the 33rd Demon King, Levia, who was currently leading the operations and commanding most of the later Demon Kings.
She was also known as “Older Sister” to the Demon Kings who followed her. Since Violet’s crystal ball was one-way, Levia couldn’t see Violet, but she spoke while looking straight ahead.
“The connection seems stable, Violet. Which Demon Kings are present at the council?”
Violet began listing the numbers of the attending Demon Kings.
“There are eleven of us present.”
It might seem like a small number compared to the seventy-two Demon Kings, but not all of them were still alive. Excluding most of the later Demon Kings who were deployed in the field, this was almost everyone.
Except for one.
“Hmm, is the 15th… absent?”
The 15th referred to Freya.
“Yes, she is.”
Unfortunately, she hadn’t come. Violet was secretly relieved. The current sentiment towards Freya wasn’t positive among the Demon Kings, due to the suspicion of leaking confidential information, starting with the 71st Demon King and leading up to Libero.
It was just a suspicion, so they couldn’t punish her, but most Demon Kings considered her the culprit.
‘It’s probably for the best that she isn’t here.’
As if solidifying the atmosphere, Levia said,
“Then let’s discuss the operation in more detail.”
The council began. The Demon King Castle faction shared information obtained from spies within the church, and Levia, representing the later Demon Kings carrying out the operation, listened.
“First, we have information on the graduates of this year’s Hero Academy.”
The Hero Academy consistently produced elite Heroes. So, the Demon King Council always kept tabs on the graduates through spies planted among the Heroes.
“First, from this year’s swordsmanship class, although not Saint-level, several swordsmen with high-ranking potential have graduated.”
Violet began reading from the compiled report. It listed several noteworthy candidates – now Heroes – and most of them were from the Swordsmanship Class 1, taught by Sigrit.
“…They’re from the Steel Clan. Considering Hugo, the current 86th ranked Hero, their potential seems considerable.”
“But Libero is gone. Besides, the Steel Clan is known for slow growth, so there’s no need to worry about them.”
Unless it was Libero, who could hide his Demon King presence within the barrier and assassinate Heroes with just his swordsmanship, actively targeting Heroes wasn’t cost-effective.
Moreover, two other important operations were currently underway. They were short on Demon Kings.
“And unusually, this year, a promising candidate emerged from Freya’s class. There was even a withdrawal during the graduation competition, which is rare.”
“A promising candidate from Freya’s class… and a withdrawal?”
The atmosphere suddenly turned cold. This description wasn’t new. The current 2nd ranked Hero… although he was in hiding, the Demon Kings hadn’t forgotten the nightmare of their first encounter with him.
“What’s his skill level?”
“It’s difficult to accurately assess, as he only used a single diagonal slash in the graduation competition. But based on that single strike, he seemed to be at least high-ranking level.”
“Already high-ranking…”
“But there’s a weakness. His Sacred Relic consumption seems to be severe. The relic broke immediately after the strike.”
“The Sacred Relic broke?”
Consuming a Sacred Relic with a single attack was a significant risk, especially for swordsmen, whose swords were their lifelines. If the sword was a Sacred Relic, its practicality in real combat would be even lower.
“And more importantly… the challenger who emerged due to the withdrawal in the Challenger Rule was also a problem.”
“The challenger?”
“It was Allen Blake.”
The atmosphere, which had seemed to lighten slightly, froze again.
“Allen Blake suddenly appeared at the graduation competition?”
Saint Allen Blake, who had been inactive for a year, had suddenly appeared at the graduation competition. Violet hadn’t been able to track his whereabouts, so it was certain he had remained in Heilen.
But since there hadn’t been any sightings reported by the spies in Heilen, his appearance was significant.
“Judging from his conversation with Hero Gwen, whom he seemed to know previously, it appears he stopped by to try and recruit her.”
“More importantly, since it was the Challenger Rule, there must have been at least a minimal exchange. What about his combat ability?”
“…He neutralized a high-ranking strike with a 1-star Sacred Relic, leaving no trace. It was described as if the strike was instantly absorbed and vanished into his sword.”
This description was familiar to the Demon Kings.
“Libero’s swordsmanship.”
The Demon Kings already knew that Allen Blake could use Libero’s swordsmanship to some extent. But he had only been clumsily imitating it, not truly mastering it.
For him to be able to neutralize a high-ranking strike with a 1-star Sacred Relic meant… that he’d grown stronger, regardless of how.
Of course, Allen’s growth was thanks to Freya, who had theoretical knowledge of Libero’s swordsmanship. But the Demon Kings had no way of knowing that.
“He’s continuing to grow stronger on his own.”
“So, he’s not satisfied with being a high-ranking Hero.”
“Then his next move will be important…”
His next move was within the realm of their predictions.
“It’s probably this, right?”
“This” referred to the Lodreim Kingdom, where Levia was currently located. Libero’s dying words to Allen Blake had been a warning about the Lodreim Kingdom.
So, if Allen Blake wasn’t inactive, his next destination would logically be the Lodreim Kingdom. But Violet shook her head.
“No, it seems he’s not going to the Lodreim Kingdom.”
“Not the Lodreim Kingdom?”
“Perhaps he also knew about the operation in the Central Sea Archipelago. After meeting Hero Gwen, he sent her to the Central Sea Archipelago first.”
The Demon King Castle faction, having learned this through their spies, remained calm. But Levia’s faction, visible through the crystal ball, seemed agitated. The Central Sea Archipelago operation was top secret.
“The Lodreim Kingdom operation was leaked by Libero, so it couldn’t be helped, but how did he find out about the Central Sea Archipelago?”
“It seems there must have been a leak from our side… there’s no other explanation.”
Although she spoke indirectly, the likely suspect was obvious. Violet quickly changed the subject.
“Thanks to this, the Pontiff has ordered the Apostle Council to gather the Heroes in the Central Sea Archipelago, and this order will soon be relayed to the Heroes.”
The situation wasn’t good. They had concentrated most of their forces in the Lodreim Kingdom to focus on the final stages of the operation there. They had neglected the Central Sea Archipelago.
“If the Heroes gather in the Central Sea Archipelago now…”
The operation there might fail.
Of course, if the Lodreim Kingdom operation succeeded, the Central Sea Archipelago operation wouldn’t be necessary. But the Lodreim Kingdom operation wasn’t guaranteed to succeed.
Its success depended on the 72nd Demon King’s awakening. If the awakening failed, the Central Sea Archipelago operation was their only remaining large-scale plan. So, they couldn’t abandon it.
There was only one solution.
“We’ll leave a small force in the Lodreim Kingdom, which is in its final stages, and redirect most of our forces to the Central Sea Archipelago.”
That was the best course of action. This would actually reduce the number of Heroes heading to the Lodreim Kingdom. They could leave behind a minimal force, since the Demon King army wasn’t directly involved in the 72nd Demon King’s awakening.
But Violet disagreed with Levia.
“But considering the relationship between Allen Blake and Libero, I don’t think he would abandon the Lodreim Kingdom…”
“Relationship? Between a Demon King and a human? Have you forgotten that he was the one who killed Libero, Violet?”
“Libero was the one who asked him to do it.”
A sudden power struggle erupted. This was rare for Violet, who was usually unassertive. But it wasn’t the first time Violet had shown an attachment to Libero and the other early Demon Kings, so Levia backed down.
“Fine, let’s say that’s true. But that doesn’t guarantee Allen Blake won’t head to the Central Sea Archipelago.”
They didn’t know how strong Allen Blake was. Eyewitnesses cLodreimed he didn’t exude the aura of a powerful being.
But his master, Libero, could conceal his strength and even his Demon King presence. They couldn’t underestimate Allen Blake. If he went to the Central Sea Archipelago instead of the Lodreim Kingdom…
“No, I still think it’s more likely he’ll head to the Central Sea Archipelago. Even Allen Blake wouldn’t ignore an order from the Pontiff.”
But Violet continued to argue.
“The exact order given to the Apostle Council was, ‘Hero Allen Blake will be heading to the Central Sea Archipelago, so summon the other Heroes there as well.’ That means Allen Blake has already spoken to the Pontiff.”
“That in itself is a contradiction…”
As the debate continued without a clear solution…
“It’s been a while since I attended a Demon King Council.”
A figure appeared in the Demon King Castle. Dull, ashen hair. A relaxed smile. It was Freya.
“Why? Were you having a secret meeting without me?”
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