Vol 1 Chapter 6 – The Emperor and the Obsidian Knigh【Vol 1: The Beastkin Hero Arc】

As the heroes each spent their days nursing their own lingering thoughts…

Opening the glass doors of his room, the old man stepped out onto the balcony, a faint smile on his lips as he wet his throat with a glass of poured wine.

From the pure white castle, he gazed out at the most beautifully disciplined city in the world. The Holy Capital Whiteworth, the center of the Holy Empire.

The cascading moonlight mingled with the glow of human activity, illuminating the rows of chalk-white buildings so clearly it hardly felt like night.

One month had passed since the 【Obsidian Knight】 became a man who would never return. Even after his grand state funeral concluded here in the Holy Capital, a massive mountain of bouquets was still laid out every single day at the memorial park’s floral tribute stand.

Having protected the world, the black-clad knight died.

At that fact, the old man—Emperor Baltrias Eizelaham Gransfelt—deepened his smile. Because for the Emperor, there couldn’t possibly be a more perfect conclusion.

“—Your Majesty.”

Called out by Adelmaria, Director of the Holy Spirit Agency, who had entered to give her report, Baltrias turned around.

“What is it?”

“How unusual. You seem to be in exceedingly high spirits.”

“…More than ever before.”

“Whenever you gazed out at the capital of the nation you rule, Your Majesty would always furrow your brow.”

“…It couldn’t be helped, with the towers of those accursed heroes constantly flickering in my vision. Weapons that cannot be moved by the King’s sole discretion are utterly unnecessary.”

Six towers stood at regular intervals throughout the Holy Capital, stretching so high they seemed to pierce the heavens. Towering even higher than the Holy Castle, the Emperor’s own residence, the masses would offer their prayers of gratitude toward those spires.

Here in the capital of the Holy Empire—the leading nation of the Human Coalition—lay the headquarters of the order where the strongest individuals of humanity’s six races gathered: the 【World Knights】.

“But now, things are different. To think you remain in such a good mood even while looking at the towers.”

“…Naturally. The man who opposed my dearest wish—the invasion of the Demon Continent—has finally vanished.”

“…If the 【World Knight】 members were to discover the truth, we certainly wouldn’t get off lightly, would we?”

“And yet, you look like you’re enjoying this the most.”

Adelmaria was smiling, looking even more amused than the Emperor himself.

“Unlike you, Your Majesty, I am not rejoicing because some wicked plot has come to fruition. I am merely relieved that Gavreel-sama, the hero of the Giantkin, has agreed to participate in our counter-invasion of the Demon Continent.”

“You witch. How brazen can you be?”

“Oh my, how cruel.”

Tee-hee. Adelmaria hid her mouth behind her hand, smiling bewitchingly.

The Emperor averted his gaze from her. His stern expression crumbling into something softer, he placed his wine glass on the marble railing of the balcony and looked up at the moon with deep satisfaction.

“Your Majesty. I apologize for interrupting your good mood, but I have a report. Leonhardt-sama and Eufaria-sama, who were half-dependent on Allen-sama, seem to have no intention of continuing as 【World Knights】. Nozes-sama and Labilia-sama have absolutely no desire to cooperate with us. It appears that for our military strength during the invasion of the Demon Continent, we will have to rely on the village as initially planned.”

“…So what? That presents no problem. That is precisely why I granted a pardon to release that deranged magic scholar imprisoned in Gehenna.”

“…Currently, Leonhardt-sama has locked herself in her room and is practically a living corpse. But if she were to learn about the village, I imagine she would be utterly furious.”

“…Allen truly took on a troublesome girl as his disciple. Even after death, he continues to get in my way.”

Baltrias had always considered the 【Obsidian Knight】, the guardian of humanity, to be a massive nuisance.

That hero could sway public opinion far more effectively than the kings of any nation. If a man whose fame echoed across the globe showed reluctance to continue the war, that alone would change everything.

The Emperor had devoted his entire life to his ambition of bringing the demon race to their knees.

It was simply too inconvenient for him to remain alive.

That was exactly why he had cooperated with the demons, selecting sacrifices from among humanity to empower the Demon King. Thanks to that, Allen was forced to use the power of the Thunder-Annihilation Sword, whittling away his own lifespan to strike a mutually fatal blow against Gaivis.

Everything had gone perfectly according to his original plan.

Of course, in the beginning, he had tried every trick in the book to win over Allen, the strongest of heroes, to get him to cooperate with his ambitions.

It was about two years ago, when half of the Demon King’s Eight Demon Generals had been defeated and the prospect of slaying the Demon King was finally in sight.

Baltrias had invited the 【Obsidian Knight】 to a room in the Holy Castle, preparing a lavish feast for a one-on-one dinner.

“—My dream is to place the Demon Continent under our control. If we dominate the demon race, conflict will never arise again. For that, I need your power. I will prepare whatever reward you desire. Gold and silver? Ancient artifacts? Perhaps the finest wine? Or… women? You are at that age, after all. I could arrange beautiful princesses that make that defective Arianne look like nothing in comparison. What do you say?”

In response to such an offer from the king of a great power who served as the leader of nations worldwide, the hero’s reply reeked of boundless selflessness.

“—All of those are far more than I deserve.”

“—There is no need for restraint! I will use all the power at my disposal to grant your deepest desire. Come now, tell me what it is you wa—”

“—Time off,” Allen declared, cutting him off eagerly.

Baltrias furrowed his brow.

(Hmm? Time off? Did he mean paid leave? Right in the middle of a war, what kind of nonsense is the guardian of humanity—)

Leaving the Emperor to his doubts, Allen cleared his throat and continued.

“—I suppose I should clarify. What I want… is time off from conflict. An eternity of peace.”

It seemed Baltrias had simply jumped to the wrong conclusion.

To be asked what he desired, and for his very first words to be about eternal peace… just how much of a saint was this man? However, that was exactly the kind of answer Baltrias had no use for.

“—To achieve that, Emperor, dialogue with the demon race is paramount. Invading the Demon Continent is out of the question. That will only spill more blood. It will only breed more hatred.”

Allen piled on his words with a certain desperate intensity.

Was it to make the Emperor change his mind? Regardless, his desperation was palpable. But in that very moment, Baltrias decisively parted ways with Allen.

He had no need for pleasant-sounding idealism.

The 【Obsidian Knight】 was, as expected, endlessly noble, and endlessly foolish. They were fundamentally incompatible.

After that, the Emperor made contact with the demons, secretly transporting criminals to offer them up to the Evil Eye King. His efforts in empowering the enemy paid off; the Demon King managed to take the black-clad knight down with him.

It was truly the ultimate, perfect ending.

“—Finally. My lifelong dream is finally coming true. Tell that magic scholar to hurry with the final adjustments. We will deliver whatever materials they need from the ruins.”

“Understood. Our glorious Majesty.”

Savoring this moment of supreme bliss, the Emperor pulled up the corners of his wrinkled mouth.

Knock, knock! Immediately after, the frantic sound of knocking echoed through the room.

“—Your Majesty! This is an emergency, please forgive my intrusion!”

“…What is it? Such a racket.”

Exchanging a glance with Adelmaria, Baltrias scowled deeply.

A man wearing the pure white uniform of the Emperor’s direct elites—the Secret Guard—entered the room and knelt with a strained, urgent expression.

“…R-Reporting! The Great Prison Island of Gehenna has been attacked by unknown assailants and completely destroyed! The former member of the Eight Demon Generals imprisoned there—the 《Soul Reverter》—has escaped!!”

“…Huh?”

“Many of the inmates were discovered dead, but it appears several others managed to use the chaos to successfully break out!”

The Great Prison Island, Gehenna. It was an ultra-maximum-security penitentiary housing criminals so dangerous they could shake the foundations of entire nations.

Naturally, its security measures should have been absolutely ironclad.

The Emperor’s ecstatic mood plummeted instantly. Boiling with rage, he ground his back teeth together.

Crunch. He crushed the marble railing with his bare grip, shattering it to dust.

While many nations were still wrapped in jubilation over the end of the Human-Demon War, this disastrous news would undoubtedly bring a fierce wave of anxiety crashing down upon the world.