Chapter 360

“Grand Duke Christian of the Dark Alliance, come out!!”

But it was quiet, without any reaction.

The magi who had followed along with her watched Drenne’s expression and raised their voices even more.

“Come out at once!!”

At the resounding roar that echoed with demonic energy, the door of the mansion inside the base opened.

But it wasn't Christian.

A beautiful girl with blood-red hair stared at Drenne with cold eyes.

“Idrinne?”

Drenne frowned.

“You’ve lost your mind. As a Lesser Lord of the Four Kings' Castle, to openly collude with the Dark Alliance.”

“It’s better than you whelps who have become the dogs of the Mystic Demonic House.”

“!!”

“And above all, I am aware that our Four Kings' Castle forming a friendly relationship with the Dark Alliance was a matter commanded by His Majesty the Demon Emperor.”

A completely different appearance from the friend-fool she showed to Chris.

But this was the original Idrinne.

Although she was of a minority faction, she was one of the lords who led the forces of the Four Kings' Castle.

“In any case, step aside. I have business with Christian.”

“That would be difficult.”

“What?”

“Grand Duke Christian is in the middle of important business right now. There is no reason for him to meet a ruffian like you who has visited without an appointment.”

An exasperating situation.

In that moment, Drenne quickly realized a certain fact.

‘As I thought, the one messing with the seal of the Demon King of Silver Snow is that whelp Christian.’

It was clear that he was pulling some kind of trick even now.

Otherwise, there was no reason for Idrinne to be so stubborn.

“I said that I must see Christian. If you do not step aside at once, my holy sword will not forgive you.”

Clang!

Drenne summoned a large greatsword from the empty air and held it.

Her epithet was the Holy Knight of Death.

She had reached the ultimate state in Necromancy Swordsmanship.

The power Drenne possessed was enough to contend for the second-in-command position of the Four Kings' Castle, along with the Vengeful Spirit, the Head of the Curse Demonic House.

But Idrinne did not back down either.

“I told you. A ruffian like you is not qualified to see my friend.”

Idrinne also drew her sword.

It was a thin rapier.

She, too, was an Absolute who held sway over the Four Kings' Castle.

If one were to go by infamy, she was even greater than Drenne.

For reference, Idrinne was the person who had shed the most blood in the Four Kings' Castle and was one of the people the magi of the Four Kings' Castle feared the most.

Swoooosh.

The air around them screamed at the presence of the two Absolutes.

In the moment a great disaster was about to break out, a listless voice was heard.

“Ah, I'm dying from a hangover, what's all this ruckus?”

A voice weary with fatigue.

He turned his gaze, and Christian had appeared, scratching his head with a deeply frowning face.

“Vice-Head Drenne? What is the matter all of a sudden?”

“……”

Drenne shut her mouth.

Far from pulling a trick at the sealing site, he looked, to anyone’s eyes, as if he were suffering from a hangover.

It didn't seem to be an act. From what she had observed with the insight of an Absolute, the whelp was currently pickled in alcohol.

‘…Could it really not have been this whelp's doing?’

But she couldn't back down so easily.

“Are you saying you really don't know why I came?”

“How would I know? It's not like you came because you wanted to have a drink with me. If you have business, state it quickly and get lost. I’m tired because of my hangover.”

Chris let out a large yawn as if for show.

‘This son of a bitch.’

Drenne felt her killing intent surge.

If she could have her way, she would have liked to make him kneel, cut off his fingers one by one, fillet his flesh, and make him confess to sins he had and hadn't committed, but as she had said numerous times, it was impossible right now.

“…Keep this in mind. There is a limit to how much we will tolerate your brazen antics.”

In the end, Drenne could only turn her back, leaving behind a single warning whose effectiveness was questionable.

Chris let out another large yawn.

“Are you alright?”

“Hm? With what?”

“How many days are you suffering after just one glass of alcohol? From now on, you are absolutely not to drink alcohol. In the name of a friend, you are forbidden from alcohol.”

“…Says who.”

Chris’s lips twitched.

But it was a fact that he felt like he was dying from his hangover, so he had nothing to say.

‘I only drank a single glass to fool those whelps from the Four Kings' Castle, so why is it this hard?’

Chris let out a heavy sigh.

‘Well, in any case, this operation is also nearing its end.’

Just then, a faint spiritual voice was heard in his ear.

[That bonehead is dozing off again. Now is our chance!]

It was the voice of the Demon King of Silver Snow!

Surprisingly, she was communicating with Chris while trapped at the sealing site.

‘The Demon King of Silver Snow is in a state where she has become my subordinate. At this distance, we can communicate sufficiently.’

This was the reason Chris had been able to mess with the seal while holding his drinking parties here.

The Demon King of Silver Snow was a powerful transcendent of mid 9-Star.

Using her as a medium, it was possible to faintly move the surrounding energy even in a sealed state.

Of course, it was so faint that it was at a meaningless level, but it was a different story if Chris added his hand.

He had been damaging the seal, little by little.

‘It’s not like I can break the seal by just pecking at it like this.’

Breaking the seal was not his objective in the first place.

It was to draw the attention of the Four Kings' Castle toward the Demon King of Silver Snow.

‘It's about time to make my move.’

Chris’s gaze sank low.

All preparations were complete.

Chris sent his voice to the Demon King of Silver Snow.

‘Can you do as I said?’

[Of course! I am great and wonderful, so anything is possible! Ah, I am so wonderful, so why is there no one who loves me?]

‘…If we bring down the Four Kings' Castle, I will introduce you to a man.’

[I hate introductions! I’m the type who pursues a natural, romantic encounter!]

‘…What’s that now?’

[A natural, romantic encounter. To fall in love with someone who is around you in a natural and romantic way… Damn it, come to think of it, the only man I know around me is you. At this rate, when will I ever escape this fate of being single since birth?]

‘…Never mind that, let’s get to work.’

This Demon King is so noisy!

Chris shook his head and continued.

‘I will transfer my energy to you remotely. With that, please damage the seal as much as possible.’

A surprising story.

Over the past few days, he had not just been damaging the seal, but had secretly tampered with the circuits of the sealing magic circle.

He had created a faint gap in the security of the sealing formation so that he could transfer his energy just once.

Naturally, only a very faint amount of energy was possible.

Most of it would evaporate in the air during the process of remote transfer.

But it was fine.

Because this was the Demon King of Silver Snow.

Unlike her shoddy personality, her epithet was the Greatest Sword on the Continent.

No matter how thread-like the energy, the moment it was held in her hand, it would become a terrible tool of destruction.

‘Here I go.’

Paaaat.

The Dark Demonic Energy, through the medium of the soul contract, headed for her, his subordinate.

In that moment, her vision and Chris’s vision overlapped.

[Watch closely.]

He could see the Demon King of Silver Snow raise her hand.

[This is my great sword.]

…Was it just his prejudice, or did it feel like she was deliberately striking a pose and showing off because Chris was watching?

In any case, her hand moved.

And destruction flashed.

* * *

Rumble.

The Tower of the Four Kings shook as if an earthquake had struck.

‘What?!’

Drenne, who had instinctively realized that a great disaster had occurred, shot up from her seat.

As expected, an urgent message was heard at once.

-This is terrible, Vice-Head! The Demon King of Silver Snow has attacked the seal!! We must deal with it at once!!

“!!”

How?

Without even time to express her question, she moved to the sealing site.

There was a large crack in the seal.

“Explain exactly what the situation is.”

[I do not know. She suddenly opened her eyes and threw a hand-sword.]

Drenne bit her lip hard.

Her anger surged at the incompetence of the 8-Star Archlich, who couldn't even figure out what had happened right in front of him, but this was no time to be angry.

‘I have to restore the seal.’

With a crack of this size, the seal could collapse.

The problem was that this seal had been erected by the Lord of the Four Kings' Castle and the Vengeful Spirit joining forces.

It was impossible for her alone.

‘Should I call for the Castle Lord and the Vengeful Spirit?’

But she shook her head.

To call for them while they were in seclusion would be to admit her own inadequacy.

Especially to the Vengeful Spirit, her rival and bitter enemy, she did not want to show a lacking side.

Even more so now, when the contest for the position of ‘Vice Lord’ was coming up.

“Bring the ‘Sage’ and the ‘Sculptor’.”

The Sage of Death.

The Sculptor of Despair.

They were the ones among the Four Kings and the Three Abysses, respectively, who specialized in black magic spells.

If they and Drenne joined forces, they should be able to handle the seal.

But another urgent report was delivered.

“Vice-Head, that whelp Christian has made a move!”

“What did you say?”

“He has left the base and entered the back alleys of the 4th District!”

“Why there?”

In that moment, Drenne’s complexion turned pale.

‘Don’t tell me he’s aiming for the control room of the obelisk connected to the 4th District?’

The Necromancy and Curse Demonic Houses had an overwhelmingly larger number of highest-ranking magi compared to other prestigious magus houses.

There were two reasons for this. One was the secret art of the lich of the Necromancy House, and the other was the obelisks.

The obelisks were magical tools that absorbed the negative emotions emitted by people.

For the necromancers and curse users, people’s negative emotions were no different from the greatest elixir.

That was why they gathered all the humans within their territory in one place and deliberately ruled through tyranny.

Because the more the people suffered, the more negative energy they could obtain.

The 4th District, in particular, was a place where many poor people resided, and the obelisks were also concentrated there.

‘Damn it, of all the times.’

Normally, she would have welcomed it with open arms.

Because she had been looking for a chance to strike the whelp.

The 4th District, in particular, was a suitable place to have him be ‘disappeared’ without a trace and without leaving any evidence.

But the situation was too coincidental.

‘No, it’s not a coincidence; it’s clear that the whelp has orchestrated this situation.’

Drenne clenched her fists tightly.

‘I have to be the one to strike the whelp’s neck myself.’

The task of killing the whelp was something she absolutely did not want to pass on to others.

She wanted to see that arrogant face of his distort in pain as he died.

‘But the seal….’

To reconstruct this seal, the assistance of someone who has reached at least the peak of 8-Star is essential.

Just then, a change occurred within the seal.

Flash.

The Demon King of Silver Snow had opened her eyes.

“!!”

A chilling shiver ran down Drenne's spine.

The moment their eyes met was fleeting. The Demon King of Silver Snow immediately fell back into a comatose state.

But in that fleeting moment, Drenne felt a terror as if she were falling into a bottomless pit.

‘…As expected, a Demon King is a Demon King. The seal comes first.’

If the Demon King of Silver Snow were to be released, a disaster incomparable to the likes of Christian would occur.

Especially now, with the Lord of the Four Kings' Castle absent, they would absolutely not be able to handle it.

[Please leave that whelp Christian to me.]

The Archlich Rockpelt said in a cold voice.

Drenne contemplated for a moment.

‘Rockpelt should be enough.’

Rockpelt was a mid 8-Star.

He was more than enough to deal with the whelp.

‘During the war, the whelp's state was 8-Star (entering). No matter who he is, only a few months have passed since the end of the war; he couldn't have grown that much.’

At best, a low 8-Star.

Even considering that he was an unrealistic monster, he couldn't have reached mid 8-Star.

But Drenne could not easily be at ease.

“Rockpelt, call not only you, but the Murderer and the Clown as well.”

The Murderer of Silence.

The Clown of the Abyss.

They were another of the Four Kings and the Three Abysses.

It meant she was mobilizing three 8-Star highest-ranking magi, including Rockpelt.

[Are you telling the three of us to attack together? Against a mere fledgling like that?]

Rockpelt growled in an insulted tone.

But Drenne took it a step further.

She pondered with a frown, then said.

“No, in addition to the three of you, the Sculptor will go as well.”

[!!]

A whopping four highest-ranking magi!

It was more than half of the seven Four Kings and Three Abysses.