Chapter 165 - Everything Went as Intended

An unpleasant green light poured from Young Master Yurei's body as it trembled.

Because preservation magic had been cast on it, it felt less like a corpse had been awakened and more like a person waking from a long sleep.

"Who are you?"

Erica, the caster of the magic, asked the question.

—Marcus... Yurei... Perry Yurei's... only son...

Identity confirmation was usually done lightly, but Erica dug in once more.

"I'll ask again. Who were you before Marcus?"

He answered.

—Kevin... of the Red Fields...

Kevin of the Red Fields.

Introducing himself that way meant he was the descendant of an ordinary farmer.

It was an introduction Marcus Yurei could never have given.

No one could suspect it had been fabricated.

The dead could not lie.

"How did you become Marcus Yurei?"

—Kidnapped... Marcus Yurei... killed him, then used... Doppler ampoule...

"What is this Doppler ampoule?"

—The path... to becoming... great Lord Godwin's... hands and feet...

The Black Dragon, Godwin.

The greatest and worst evil dragon, one that could never be forgotten.

Those who pursued that thing were Demon Followers!

Without even giving them time to fall into shock, Erica continued to the next question.

"Did Regent Ferda kill you?"

—N... o.

"Then how did you die from dark magic?"

—Framing... Ferda... chaos... ughhhhhh!!

The green glow in his eyes faded.

They had finished every question that could be asked through Deadman Knock.

Which meant it was now time to counterattack.

"Bishop Joseph Faust."

Ferda, who had been lying as still as if he were dead, opened his mouth.

In the cauldron of shock, Joseph's shoulders nearly shot to the sky.

"W-What is it, Regent Ferda?"

"You said it, did you not? That the source of the dark magic was me."

The look in Ferda's eyes, which had remained calm and rational, began to change.

"You said you conducted this fairly and impartially beneath the light of Altes, so can you explain why I became the source of the dark magic?"

He moved on to a new subject without even the chairman's consent.

No, what need was there for consent?

The man who had officially declared that nothing could be hidden beneath the light of Altes, and the religious representative of this Empire no less, had nearly framed him because of such a fatal mistake.

"Th-That is... when I investigated it, it was undoubtedly Regent Ferda Valdrova..."

"It seems there was an error. May I investigate those traces again?"

Ferda lightly prodded him, knowing he would refuse.

"I doubt that will be possible. While investigating, they were heavily damaged..."

"Then let's see just how damaged they are."

The one who cut him off was Erdes.

As someone who hated demons, and therefore hated dark magic as well, she reached out to the body as she pleased and checked it.

"Oh my, this is practically torn apart on purpose, isn't it? How did you make such a rough mess of it, hmm... Well, thankfully, it's not as though I don't know how to restore this."

When Erdes gestured a few times, the faint traces gradually became clearer and returned to their original state.

"Now then... hmm... It definitely wasn't made in Grand Duchess Valdrova's territory. There's a northern scent left on it."

As if she were enjoying herself, she rattled off the information coming from the traces.

Joseph Faust's face, by contrast, was turning pale.

He was the representative of this nation's state religion.

But Erdes was the Chairman of the Magical Society representing all Serdes.

"Committee Member Faust..."

Waldemar called him like a man in shock.

"That is conjecture!"

Joseph shouted.

"There is also the possibility that Regent Ferda covered those traces when he cast preservation magic..."

"If you're so incompetent you can be toyed with by a mere 4th Circle's scheme, doesn't that mean you lack ability? As a Leader of the Order?"

"Th-This is clearly a conspiracy!"

Joseph pointed an accusing finger toward Ferda.

As he was pressed further and further into a corner, his behavior grew frivolous.

"That Demon spawn from the far east is clearly trying to make me out to be a liar!"

Foaming at the mouth, he tried to drive everyone into believing Ferda was a Demon.

But which side was the truth remained up in the air.

It was difficult to accept that the famous and virtuous Leader of Altes was, in truth, a heinous Demon Follower on the other side.

Just then, Akkad's aide hurried over and whispered something into his ear.

Watching that, Ferda felt nothing less than a devil's temptation.

The urge to stretch out his shadow and eavesdrop on the conversation surged within him.

Even though he had a good idea what it was about, it was undoubtedly something he wanted to hear for himself.

"According to breaking news just delivered, new evidence has been secured!"

Akkad's eyes turned coldly toward someone.

"Committee Member Joseph Faust."

"Yes, Chairman..."

"They say unidentified bones were discovered in your room at the cathedral. How do you explain this fact?"

Ferda quietly measured the time.

One hour and twenty minutes, was it?

Considering the time it took for the news to be delivered, it would be safe to say it took about an hour.

'Not as good as he was in his prime.'

It was an unprecedented and outstanding result, but for Ferda, who knew his skill, it was not a satisfying level.

"Bones? What do you mean by that...?"

"It has just been confirmed. They say there is a rotting corpse in a secret storage space in your private bedroom, along with class-one confidential documents."

Akkad, the chairman, pressed him so hard he even ignored neutrality.

"If you cannot give a proper explanation for this fact, you will not take a single step out of here today, Bishop."

His trembling hands folded neatly together.

"That body too is something I know nothing about, I... I am the great..."

The trembling stopped.

On his face settled a joy forged from madness.

"By the will of Lord Godwin, Master of the Void, I offer up this body!"

Joseph shouted, spreading both arms.

He manifested self-destruct magic.

Just as light was about to burst from his body,

A cube-like thing trapped his entire body.

The intensifying light subsided powerlessly.

"Oh? You dare try to put on a self-destruct show in front of me?"

It was Erdes's magic.

"You goddamn piece of trash."

What she hated most was demons.

But if there was anything she hated nearly as much, it was Demons.

The hand Erdes had extended toward the cube clenched in midair.

Then a vicious sound rang loudly from inside the cube.

CRUNCH!

"Aaaaaagh!"

Joseph Faust howled in pain.

Erdes did not stop there.

CRUNCH!

CRACK, CRUNCH!

She twisted, folded, and smashed him.

She did not stop until every bone in his body was shattered and his body sagged like a mollusk.

She tormented him until he was truly barely breathing, then made him into a specimen inside the cube.

After reducing him to rags, Erdes looked at Erica and said,

"You let me investigate the dark magic, so I'll take this and investigate it myself. No complaints, right, Eri?"

"... Do as you wish."

"From the look of things, there doesn't seem to be anything more to discuss, and I don't think I'll get to have any fun either... so may I leave? I'm dying to know what sort of scheme this bastard was cooking up."

Erdes asked Akkad.

Even so, before she could hear his answer, Erdes opened a portal on her own and returned to the Magical Society with Bishop Joseph.

Her complete disregard for procedure was infuriating, but not as much as the absurd situation right now.

Like the place where a storm had blown through and passed on, everything had become a complete mess once more.

Among them, the most shocked person was Yurei.

"That can't be... My son... Are you saying that wasn't my son?"

Since when had my son not been my son?

Countless questions seemed to pour out like a collapsed dam.

But those doubts could not be resolved.

Not anymore.

"Everyone, please be silent. This session has not yet adjourned."

It was not Akkad, but Waldemar, who calmed them that way.

"Duke Yurei..."

He looked down at Duke Yurei and spoke.

"It seems the one impersonating your son was a Demon, or perhaps one of their followers."

"..."

"And so..."

Waldemar placed his clasped hands on the table.

With a heavy sigh, he said,

"I think we will need to investigate you as well."

"What... do you mean?"

"What else would I mean? You must prove that you are human."

Duke Yurei shouted.

"Of course I am human! I am Perry Yurei of House Yurei, which has devoted itself to the kingdom!"

"How are we supposed to believe that?"

Waldemar's eyes were cold.

"Were you not unaware that the son closest to you was a Demon?"

"I, I..."

"Of course, you may not be the one wearing that mask. But what if you joined hands with Demon Followers?"

"There is no way I would do something so absurd...!"

"It is not absurd."

Waldemar shook his head.

"Did you not come here after losing everything, intending to see this through to the end?"

That characteristic was exactly the sort of thing Demon Followers or those who followed Demons would do.

He had thought he had nothing left to lose.

He had come here with that single thought, yet here he had lost something again.

"Unfortunately, we cannot let you leave here until we finish confirming your identity."

And only after losing even that did he finally begin to see.

In Duke Yurei's shocked eyes, a muddy and ugly truth became visible.

"Waldemar Gold, you sly old fox! You intended this from the start, didn't you!!"

His deep rage gathered in his finger as he pointed at Waldemar.

"You talked of the grief of a father who lost his child! You said you would execute justice! And now that you have a pretext, you mean to send me away like this!?"

To his rage, Waldemar answered this way.

"How ugly, thrashing around when you could not even recognize your own son, you dog of Demons."

"You damned, unforgivable piece of filth!!"

Duke Yurei finally lost his reason and kicked off from the witness stand.

His fingertip flashed.

What he had hidden inside his collar was a sharp awl.

"I will at least kill you before I leave today!"

That awl was an item meant to punish the one who had killed his son.

The item prepared for Ferda flew toward Waldemar Gold.

He threw himself forward and flew at him, but it did not reach.

His body was pressed down by something and slammed to the floor.

Oldin Ruster.

With movements too agile for his massive body, he had subdued Duke Yurei.

"You are not in your right mind, Duke. My apologies, but I will have to commit a little discourtesy."

CRACK!

"Aaaagh!"

Oldin twisted his arm and neutralized him.

Waldemar looked down at him and said,

"We must first interrogate you to see whether you truly are Duke Yurei. Not simply for the safety of the Arken Empire, but for the Kingdom of Heinkel as well, and for the safety of the continent."

"Gooold..."

Duke Yurei glared at Grand Duke Gold with bloodshot eyes.

His desperate scream rang through the Golden Council.

And so, the meeting of the Golden Council, which had turned into complete chaos, was adjourned.

Ferda returned to the inn where he was staying.

In Concillus's stead, Arwen greeted Ferda.

"Do you have a schedule tomorrow as well?"

"No. Since they adjourned, I doubt there is anything more to say."

"Then I will have them prepare so you may leave at any time tomorrow."

"Thank you for your trouble."

Ferda went inside the tent and sat on the sofa.

Then he reflected on what had happened today.

As a result, Ferda had safely protected the far east and the assets he had to protect.

'The plan undoubtedly succeeded.'

Ferda had thought about how to keep the far east safe.

If he attempted an all-out battle for public opinion, Ferda could never win.

Because he could not match the Empire in population or influence.

That was why Ferda had planned to prove that there were Demon Followers in the Empire.

And there actually were.

Not in the audience seats, nor in the assembly seats, but in the senior committee seats.

And at that, he had lived all this time without knowing that a Bishop of the cathedral was a pawn of the Demons.

'With this, I have gained the pretext for autonomy.'

The bare face of the integrity hidden behind golden light had been exposed, and it had been proven that the far east's barrier was not the problem.

They could no longer put the brakes on him while talking about responsibility in the far east.

Since the master of the Blue Eye Tower had even stepped forward to defend them, Grand Duchess Valdrova's territory had no choice but to be acknowledged not as a borderland of the Empire, but as a shield protecting the Serdes Continent.

'Even so...'

Strangely, he did not feel as if he had won.

Alexander was famous for screwing up, so Ferda had not even expected anything from him.

It was as dull as a twenty-year-old adult fighting a seven-year-old child barehanded.

'Waldemar.'

That old man was strange.

Amid the vicious waves of emotion, Waldemar had flowed with a consistent feeling from beginning to end.

Like a great river that could not be stopped by anything.

Why?

Ferda drank his tea and thought about it again and again.

"Regent."

Someone called him.

It was Arwen.

He entered the tent and carefully asked,

"A guest has come. It is the Princess. What would you like to do?"

It was around the time the evening glow was setting.

It was not a good hour for a woman to be out and about.

"Tell her to come in for now."

Permission was given, and a moment later, a woman in an inconspicuous robe entered.

She removed her hood and took out the blond hair she had hidden.

"Congratulations. With this, you have firmly secured the pretext for autonomy."

"Do you see it as a great victory?"

Holding onto his unease, Ferda asked Olivia.

"If we judge only by the fact that you gained autonomy, then yes, it is a victory."

Her answer was not refreshing.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean that if we look at the overall picture, that is not the case."

As expected, it had not been needless worry.

Olivia must have felt the exact same thing Ferda had.

If there was any difference, it was that what Ferda had only sensed instinctively, Olivia knew in concrete terms.

"If we choose the greatest beneficiary of this incident as the victor, it ends up being Grand Duke Gold."

The victor was indeed the one who had not been swept along by the flow, but had simply watched.