Chapter 301
Leaving Alros behind had a separate reason.
‘I have to use Alros to make the underlying preparations to eliminate the Beast King.’
However, since the brutish werewolf bastards might try to harm Alros, he had given them a strong warning beforehand.
-Grand Duke Christian will be used as a valuable experimental subject by our castle in the future, so do not lay a single finger on him.
-If Grand Duke Christian is injured, we will hold the Magical Beast Demonic House responsible.
After leaving the territory of the Magical Beast Demonic House, he released the magic and returned to his original form.
The next target was the Illusion Demonic House.
He met a few people on the way.
He met with Yulian and Merian, whom he had called over in advance, and gave them a certain mission. He also met with Ruina.
This was to give her instructions for the things he would set in motion in the Karn Empire after his business with the Tri-Alliance was finished.
“Wait, stop. What did you just say? Are you in your right mind?”
“Why? Didn't I tell you before? That I would be getting involved in the struggle for the throne.”
“I knew that, but there was no talk of this, was there?!”
Ruina raised her voice.
“You're going to impersonate a royal and challenge for the throne yourself?!”
That was right.
This was the reason Ruina was freaking out.
Because Chris was about to pull another crazy stunt.
And it was a crazy stunt that couldn't even be compared to what he had done so far.
Not simply providing aid to one of the royals, but personally impersonating a royal to become a principal party in the struggle for the throne.
“Weren't you trying to help the Crown Prince?!”
“Realistically, it’s impossible to put the Crown Prince on the throne in the current situation. You should know that as well.”
“No, even so, for you to become a royal yourself and aim to be the emperor?! What kind of dog-barking nonsense is that?! No, in the first place, how are you going to impersonate a royal? You don't even have an Imperial Soul!”
The royals of the Karn Empire have a unique characteristic in their souls that others do not.
A characteristic called the Imperial Soul, it is used to identify the royals.
It was a feature that was impossible to fake, so it was impossible for anyone to impersonate a royal.
‘Well, there's no need to impersonate. My soul is still the soul of a Karn Empire royal.’
In his previous life, he was born of the blood of the Theocracy’s Law Clan and the Karn Empire's imperial family.
And as a direct descendant of the current emperor, his bloodline was the noblest on the continent.
Of course, since he couldn't say that, he gave a vague excuse.
“Do you not know who I am? Faking something like that is no trouble at all. You just prepare the fake identity.”
“A fake identity?”
“Yes. The origin of the Hero I'm currently playing is unknown, so we'll make him out to be a hidden child of the current emperor. Since the current emperor was a famous playboy, it wouldn't be strange for one illegitimate child to pop up out of nowhere.”
Ruina had a fed-up look on her face.
But at the same time, she got goosebumps.
The current ‘Hero’ was causing a huge stir in the Alliance.
But what if that ‘Hero’ was the current emperor’s bloodline?
It was sure to cause an enormous stir in the Karn Empire.
“Are you serious? You’re not really trying to become the emperor, are you?”
“Who knows? I have my own thoughts, so you just do as I say.”
Ruina swallowed hard.
‘Crazy bastard. Insane son of a bitch. Why did I join hands with such a devil.’
She couldn't begin to guess what Chris was thinking.
She didn't think he was really trying to become the emperor, but one thing was certain.
An enormous storm was about to hit the Karn Empire.
And that devil, within that storm, would take what he wanted. Just as he always had until now.
But it was too late to back out now.
Because Ruina also had a ‘goal’. One that she could not achieve without Chris.
“Argh, I understand! I’ll trust you!”
“Ah, there’s something else you need to prepare.”
“…What is it?”
“Since we're going to be pretending to be royalty, let’s do it properly. But, it might cost a little money.”
“……”
After hearing Chris’s story, Ruina,
“You call this a little, you wretched man?! Are you trying to bankrupt someone?!”
“Well, if I do well, you do well too, so think of it as an investment. Once this is all over, it will come back to you as a much bigger profit. At this rate, won't you become the greatest merchant on the continent? You should be grateful.”
“Uwaaaaaak! If you can’t even talk sense! You devil bastard!!”
Afterward, Ruina disappeared, and Chris turned his gaze.
The matter in the Karn Empire was for later.
Before that, he had to take care of the matter at hand.
The next target was the Duke of Illusion.
* * *
Unlike with the Beast King, Chris made secret contact with the Duke of Illusion.
“It is an honor to meet the renowned Duke of Illusion. I am Christian of the Dark Demonic House.”
The Duke of Illusion was an old man in his sixties.
With a sharp impression.
His sharp eyes glinted.
“What business does the Grand Duke of the Dark Demonic House have here? I do not believe the relationship between my house and the Dark Demonic House is one where we would leisurely exchange greetings.”
“I have come because I have something urgent to tell you in private.”
“What is it?”
“I have obtained information that the Beast King is conspiring with the Four Kings' Castle and is planning to strike Your Highness.”
“!!”
The Duke of Illusion’s face hardened.
“What nonsense. Do you wish to die?”
A fierce energy surged forward.
But Chris looked straight at the Duke of Illusion and continued.
“Doesn't Your Highness also have your suspicions? That the Beast King’s recent movements have been unusual.”
The Duke of Illusion was silent.
Just as Chris said, he had had his own suspicions.
“So what is it you want to say?”
“I have come to propose an alliance.”
“…What did you say?”
“Join hands with our Dark Alliance and strike the Beast King. Then you, Duke of Illusion, will become the leader of the Tri-Alliance.”
The Duke of Illusion’s eyes flickered with a deep light for a moment.
It was a light of greed that could not be hidden.
‘The Duke of Illusion desires the leader's seat, after all.’
But he did not nod his head easily.
“I cannot comply. I cannot cause internal conflict within the Tri-Alliance.”
“It’s not that you’re afraid of the Beast King?”
“!!”
Chris twisted the corners of his mouth into a smirk.
“The Beast King is already planning to strike Your Highness. To talk of pacifism when the enemy has a sword aimed at you.”
“……”
“Isn't that a typical coward's excuse?”
“…Shut your mouth.”
Fwaaaaat!
The enraged Duke of Illusion let his demonic energy rise.
But Chris did not stop talking.
“I understand. In truth, Your Highness is no match for the Beast King, are you?”
“…You bastard. How dare you.”
A rough, overwhelming pressure surged forward.
A turbulent appearance, unlike the common opinion that he was like a snake.
This was because Chris had struck a nerve.
‘Among the three lords of the Tri-Alliance, the Duke of Illusion is the weakest.’
For reference, the Beast King and the Duke of Illusion were both at the level of mid 8-Star.
But even though they were both mid 8-Star, their skills were not equal.
The general consensus was that the Beast King was a step… no, two steps above.
If the Duke of Illusion had barely reached mid 8-Star, the Beast King had reached the end of mid 8-Star and was looking toward the high-level state.
“Well, if you truly lack the confidence, then kneeling to the Beast King would be fine, I suppose. If you go to the Magical Beast Demonic House right now and bow your head, the Beast King will also show you mercy.”
“You bastard!!”
“I believe that is the most realistic measure. Ah, or perhaps you don't want to bow your head either?”
The Duke of Illusion ground his teeth.
A face that showed he could not let go of his greed for the leader's seat.
‘So full of greed, anyway.’
Chris smiled to himself.
‘Well, from my perspective, that's not a bad thing. It makes him easy to use.’
Chris opened his mouth.
“Do not worry. If you join hands with us, you will be able to take down the Beast King.”
“How? Are you saying that Head Nordian will come?”
“That is not it. There is no need for that.”
“…No need?”
“The one who will be helping you is me. My help will be more than enough to take down the Beast King.”
“!!”
The Duke of Illusion had a look on his face as if he had just heard something insane.
“What nonsense is this? What do you think a mere punk like you can do?”
“Mere? Don't tell me you haven't heard who it was that caused the annihilation of the Demon King of Azure Flow?”
The Duke of Illusion snapped his mouth shut.
‘Come to think of it.’
The rumor that had recently stirred up the Magus Empire the most was the annihilation of the Demon King of Azure Flow.
Because it was the fall of a Demon King.
What was even more unbelievable was that this arrogant young whelp before his eyes had played the most decisive role in defeating the Demon King of Azure Flow.
-If it weren't for my grandson, Christian, we would have been the ones to be defeated.
Nordian had said so, and Grand Duke Vessian and Duke Huam had affirmed that it was true.
Unbelievable, but it meant that it was the truth.
“Whether you trust me or not is Your Highness's choice. However, keep this in mind. If you refuse my hand, you will have to bow your head to the Beast King for all eternity.”
The Duke of Illusion glared at Christian with bloodshot eyes.
A look of conflict.
‘It's a famous story that the Duke of Illusion has a complex about the Beast King.’
The Duke of Illusion had lived his entire life being subtly looked down upon by the Ghost Sword King and the Beast King.
Therefore, crushing the Beast King was the Duke of Illusion’s lifelong wish.
Still, as the Duke of Illusion could not readily make a decision, Chris shrugged his shoulders.
“It is a shame that you hesitate, even after I have said this much. It seems I have misjudged you. In any case, since the Beast King will become the leader of the Tri-Alliance, I suppose I will go and see him instead.”
He had once again wounded the Duke of Illusion’s pride, and.
“…Understood. I will do as you say.”
The Duke of Illusion finally nodded his head.
‘Excellent!’
Chris whistled to himself.
“However, I will ask again. Do you really have a way to eliminate the Beast King?”
“Of course. However, there is something I will need Your Highness to cooperate with.”
“…Cooperation?”
“Yes, there are some preparations that need to be made to capture the Beast King.”
Chris spoke of another objective he was aiming for in the Illusion Demonic House.
“Please allow me to assimilate the Illusory Sacred Stone.”
* * *
The Illusory Sacred Stone was a magic stone that contained the essence of the Illusion Demonic House.
It could allow Chris's illusion arts to advance to a higher dimension.
Naturally, the Duke of Illusion refused, but Chris explained why the Illusory Sacred Stone was necessary to capture the Beast King.
“I cannot help Your Highness with the power of the Dark Demonic House. Strictly speaking, this is an internal affair of the Tri-Alliance. If it becomes known that an outsider like me has interfered in the dispute for the leadership, Your Highness will also be in a difficult position.”
He was right.
There was only one way.
“I will assimilate the Illusory Sacred Stone and help Your Highness with illusion arts.”
“…What nonsense.”
“It is possible. Please listen.”
After hearing Chris’s explanation, the Duke of Illusion’s eyes widened as if they would tear.
Because it was an unbelievable story.
“…Is such a thing possible?”
“Your Highness must have also heard of the things I have accomplished until now. This much is more than possible.”
In the end, the Duke of Illusion nodded his head and permitted him to use the Illusory Sacred Stone.
‘Bingo.’
Requesting the Illusory Sacred Stone was, of course, a demand filled with Chris’s personal, selfish desires.
‘If not for an opportunity like this, it would have been impossible to assimilate the Illusory Sacred Stone.’
Of course, it was also true that it was necessary to capture the Beast King.
“Then I will prepare the troops to strike the Beast King.”
“No, we do not need troops. Just the two of us, Your Highness and I, will be enough to strike the Beast King.”
“…What?”