Chapter 288
“It’s not difficult. We just need to take out the top.”
“!!”
“If we eliminate the Demon Sword King, the Beast King, and the Phantom Duke—the leader, second-in-command, and third-in-command of the Triangular Alliance—they won’t dare to challenge us anymore.”
They were the heads of the Demon Sword Clan, the Beast Clan, and the Phantom Clan, respectively.
“That’s absurd… How do you expect to take down those guys?”
Everyone reacted with disbelief.
Understandably so.
All three were eight-star absolute-level demons.
Especially the Demon Sword King—he had reached the pinnacle of the upper eight-star rank, an absolute being who could rival even the legendary Nordians of the past.
“Have you already forgotten who made the Azure Dragon King kneel?”
“!!”
In truth, Christian’s plan wasn’t just about eliminating the Demon Sword King, the Beast King, and the Phantom Duke.
‘I have to bring the entire Triangular Alliance to its knees before the Dark League.’
An unfathomable thought.
The combined strength of the Triangular Alliance far surpassed that of the Dark League.
So how could he possibly make them submit?
And alone, no less.
‘There’s a plan.’
Christian smiled slyly and declared, “Don’t worry. Trust me and leave it to me.”
In the end, the three clan leaders agreed to follow Christian’s plan.
They trusted him, but more importantly, standing back and waiting wasn’t going to solve anything.
‘If the Four Kings Fortress and the Triangular Alliance join forces to march on the Southern Magic Kingdom, we won’t stand a chance.’
So everything rested on Christian’s shoulders.
‘We have to subdue the Triangular Alliance and get the Karn Empire to strike the Four Kings Fortress from behind. That’s the only way we won’t lose.’
Not losing.
Christian never believed they could win this war outright.
The power gap was just too great.
‘If we can just hold them off, that’s already a huge success. Then we can topple the Four Kings Fortress afterward.’
Plans began to unfold clearly in Christian’s mind.
‘After breaking the momentum of the Four Kings Fortress in this war, we have to bring it down from within.’
From the inside.
A telling statement.
Taking down the Four Kings Fortress from the outside was practically impossible.
Even if it were, the bloodshed would be unimaginable.
So Christian planned to dismantle it from within.
He thought more concretely.
‘I just need to become the lord of the Four Kings Fortress.’
A ridiculous idea that would sound insane to anyone else.
But it wasn’t a pipe dream.
There was a plan.
‘If this war ends successfully as I intend, it’s entirely possible.’
Still, it was a crazy notion.
To infiltrate the Four Kings Fortress and force it to submit from the inside.
‘But it has to be done.’
Christian’s gaze darkened.
‘If I don’t do this, I’ll never uncover the truth about my past life, Ragnarok.’
The Bloodthirsty Demon King had destroyed the world.
Why?
No, before that—why did ‘Idrinne’ become the Bloodthirsty Demon King?
Looking back, there were countless suspicious points.
‘Now that I think about it, I can’t believe I never questioned them before.’
Since becoming an Elder, these doubts had flooded his mind like a broken dam.
Among them, one question he absolutely had to answer:
‘Why did I reincarnate?’
That, too, was connected to his past life, Ragnarok.
‘Only by becoming the lord of the Four Kings Fortress can I uncover all these mysteries.’
But first, the war had to be successfully concluded.
The first step was to subdue the Triangular Alliance.
He didn’t head straight to the Triangular Alliance.
‘Preparations must be made first.’
Instead, he went somewhere unexpected—the Holy Empire.
“How have you been?”
“Good, good. But why are we here?”
“Why? To meet the Holy Sovereign, of course. We’ve gotten close, haven’t we?”
Surprisingly, Christian was now inside the imperial palace of the Holy Empire.
And he was here to meet the Holy Sovereign?
Ruina, who had tagged along as usual, looked pale.
“Well, it’s not impossible to meet the Holy Sovereign. You just have to introduce me. You’ve built up some connections, right?”
“I have, but…! If the Holy Sovereign finds out your true identity as a demon…”
“They won’t. Just fool them well enough.”
“But it’s the Holy Sovereign we’re talking about!”
Ruina let out a sharp cry.
‘If you want to die, go alone! Why drag me into this? What if I get burned at the stake with you?’
At that moment, Evan clicked his tongue in disapproval, looking at Ruina with pity.
Duke Christian is risking his life for the greater good.
Ruina, that money-grubbing pest, only thinks of herself…
That was the message in his eyes.
Ruina was so frustrated she could barely speak.
“Don’t worry too much. You won’t die, I promise.”
“I-Iris! If your demon identity is exposed, you can just run off to the Magic Empire, but I’ll have to disband the entire guild!”
“On the other hand, if things go well, you might be able to ask the Holy Sovereign to grant your ‘heart’s desire.’”
Ruina flinched.
Her ‘heart’s desire’—the reason she clung so desperately to money.
“…What do you mean?”
“Well, I might be able to put the Holy Sovereign deeply in your debt. Then, as a favor, you could ask for your wish.”
“……”
“Of course, the Karn Empire Emperor’s approval is the most important for that, but that opportunity will come soon enough.”
Naturally, the Karn Empire also planned to use Ruina.
In the end, Ruina agreed to Christian’s plan, and they soon arranged a meeting with the Holy Sovereign.
By the way, Ruina had used the fanatic cult’s affairs as a pretext to meet the Holy Sovereign, and from there, their relationship had rapidly deepened.
“Oh ho ho, isn’t my skill impressive? It’s all thanks to me.”
“You’re lying. You probably just used the hero’s name.”
“Tch. Same difference. The Holy Sovereign’s interest in the hero is all because I talked up my connections.”
Christian nodded.
‘Evan’s reputation alone is enough to get the Holy Sovereign’s attention.’
Though he was currently exiled, Evan was the legitimate heir of a renowned swordsmanship lineage, recognized by the celestial order as a hero.
“Please continue to look after me, Your Heroic Excellency.”
Christian’s teasing words left Ruina and Evan staring at him in silence.
“Why?”
“I’m not the hero.”
“…What?”
Evan said something unexpected.
“You’re the hero, Christian.”
“What? What do you mean?”
Christian looked baffled.
A demon like him, a hero?
“The hero is obviously you. We all saw you defeat the cult’s monster.”
“I haven’t been recognized by the Scales of Justice.”
“What? That can’t be.”
Christian’s face fell.
The Scales of Justice was a legendary artifact in the Holy Empire.
It judged good and evil.
It also served as a hero detector.
‘In my past life, Evan was definitely recognized by the Scales of Justice. Why? Could it be…?’
A thought struck Christian, and he fell silent.
Here’s a question:
What exactly is a hero?
Someone who saves the world.
But how do you determine who the hero is?
It’s ambiguous.
Simply receiving the celestial order’s blessing doesn’t make one a hero.
There were knights and mages who had the blessing, but not all were heroes.
In fact, many past heroes had no such blessing.
‘And in chaotic times, countless frauds claim to be heroes.’
That’s why the Scales of Justice were used to judge.
As its name suggests, the Scales measure how just a person is.
It also has another function.
It judges how many achievements the person has made for the world.
Only those recognized as having made ‘world-saving’ achievements are called heroes.
‘Damn it.’
Cold sweat broke out on Christian’s forehead.
He had a bad feeling.
Evan hadn’t done much as a hero yet.
But what about him?
‘Damn. By the hero detector’s standards, I really am the hero.’
No one could match Christian’s achievements for the world.
Though all his actions were ultimately for wealth and glory, they were still acts to save the world.
‘No way, me a hero? What nonsense!’
It was a terrible thought.
“Christian, I believe you will be recognized as a hero by the Scales of Justice.”
Evan nodded at him with unwavering trust.
Christian scowled.
‘Damn it. I hate it.’
In truth, being recognized as a hero wouldn’t hurt.
After all, his fake identity disguised by the celestial order’s emblem would be accepted, causing no problems.
It might even be useful when working with the alliance later.
‘Still, I hate it. I’m already suffering instead of Evan, and now I have to be recognized as a hero too!’
It was an instinctive rejection.
But he had no choice but to step onto the Scales of Justice.
‘To meet the Holy Sovereign, everyone must be judged by the Scales.’
As mentioned, the Scales also judged good and evil.
It was tradition that anyone visiting the Holy Sovereign’s palace must be weighed.
“Step forward.”
The priest said curtly.
A large statue engraved with the image of the celestial order stood like a pillar, with scales hanging from it.
‘No, maybe something unexpected will happen.’
If an evil person stepped on the scales, the statue would glow red; if a righteous person, it would shine white.
“Please, just a plain white light. Please.”
But then.
The moment the scale tipped.
“Hm, a glow…?”
A white light did appear.
The problem was—it wasn’t an ordinary white glow.
The priest’s eyes widened as if they might tear.
“Th-this? C-could it be?!”
“That light?!!”
All the priests nearby murmured in astonishment.
And it wasn’t just those close by.
Flash!
A brilliant light burst forth from the statue.
It was so intense it seemed to wash over the entire Sacred Palace.
Every priest inside could see it clearly.
This was the holy radiance—the sign that the one on the scale had achieved deeds worthy of saving the world.
‘…I’m doomed.’
Chris sighed.
He’d been chosen as the hero.
* * *
“A hero has been born?!”
“That’s right!! And not just any hero! A radiance bright enough to engulf the entire Sacred Palace?!”
The Sacred Palace was thrown into chaos.
For reference, even a hero’s radiance has levels.
The greater the heroic deeds accomplished to save the world, the more dazzling the light.
What Chris had just displayed was an unprecedentedly intense glow.
It seemed the achievements from his previous life, during the era of destruction, had been factored in as well.
‘Damn it.’
Chris slipped into the waiting room, avoiding the ecstatic priests, wearing a face that screamed discomfort.
-Evan’s gaze, now filled with even deeper respect, seemed to say, “As expected of Christian. I believed in you.”
That only made Chris’s stomach churn more.
He let out a heavy sigh, but it was already too late.
‘At this point, there’s no choice. I’ll have to make use of this hero title.’