Chapter 187: Chapter 187: Spark (4)

Originally, the pattern of devil worshippers attacking the city and the devilish dragon appearing was supposed to happen after the main story began, when they revealed their true colors.

In other words, it meant that the main story was already progressing at this very moment.

In the game, this was supposed to happen after Denif carried out a terrorist attack in the imperial capital…

Considering that Denif had no reason to carry out a terrorist attack now, it meant that events had been accelerated by several years.

The reason for that was obviously because of me.

I had ruined their plans to gradually gather people in secret and lay the groundwork to overthrow the empire.

Now that their identities had been fully exposed, there was no point in being secretive on the continent, and their activities were also restricted.

From their perspective, this was a bold move.

‘Still, they don’t intend to occupy the continent yet.’

Currently, two devils have descended on the continent. Those two aren’t enough to take over the continent yet.

There are differences in strength even among devils. For now, three or four Sword Masters could take down one devil, albeit with some casualties.

It’s also not a situation where their forces are as vast as in the game.

Since covert expansion of their forces became impossible because of me, they acted to find another breakthrough.

‘They’ve made Vasto a stage for transporting sacrifices to summon devils.’

In a situation where their identities have been revealed. From their perspective, the plan to target the princess failed, and even a high-ranking executor died.

It wasn’t a choice made solely out of anger towards me. In a way, it’s a wise method.

Now that there’s no reason to move in secret, they quickly increased their devil count by one.

There was a bit of bitterness. I certainly did my best. The harvest was decent too. It’s not easy to kill a high-ranking executor and an Archmage.

But the ensuing consequences weren’t all good.

‘Well, I’ll have to deal with it.’

It’s not like I didn’t know they would respond when I took a step forward.

The opponents aren’t fools who would just wait quietly until the game’s timeline without doing anything.

Moreover, attacking Vasto wouldn’t have been a difficult task for them.

They were probably just lying low because they were focusing on the plan to target the princess.

With the surprise attack and a devil moving directly, and with no Sword Master there, it probably didn’t even take a few hours.

They would have used the people of the city and Devil’s Blood as sacrifices to summon a devil, and summoned a devilish dragon with the remaining sacrifices. 𝐑ἈƝÓ𐌱Ěs

And then they would have left Vasto. The devil worshippers probably don’t intend to wage all-out war right now.

They’ll attack cities in guerrilla-style whenever they get the chance, just like in the game.

‘I wonder how things will turn out.’

My head is getting complicated. A city has disappeared. Even if they left Vasto, the empire will dispatch troops.

Much faster than my initial estimate of six months to a year.

I couldn’t even guess how the course of the war would go, or how the emperor would organize his troops.

It wasn’t a good thing.

‘Or is it?’

Let’s think of it as something that was bound to happen anyway. Right now, I was trying to drive a wedge between the princes.

Perhaps now, when changes are occurring within the empire, an appropriate opportunity might arise.

Another thought suddenly came to mind. It was because I lacked information about the devil worshippers.

I can’t receive information about them from the empire or Haisen, and the accuracy would be low anyway.

‘Should I create a new identity?’

This thought occurred to me because I had just seen their recruitment process at Mateo’s bar yesterday.

Thinking about it in reverse, I could infiltrate their side with a disguised identity.

An internal spy. But I’m not sure if it’s a good idea. It would take considerable time to reach a suitable position.

And I’d have to invest resources there instead of what I need to do.

It’s possible, but considering the uncertain time and investment costs, it didn’t seem worth it.

It doesn’t seem right after all. Let’s focus on the princes for now. It’s time for selection and concentration.

I might lose both birds if I try to catch them at the same time.

Anyway, to get proper information, I’d have to go to their stronghold in the north.

I decided to set that aside for now and observe the situation in the imperial family. I shouldn’t miss the opportunities that might arise in the chaos.

***

“Your Majesty, we’ve received a message.”

“Yes. What did the divine doctor say?”

“…He said he won’t come.”

The emperor let out a hollow laugh. He had somewhat expected this, but it still felt dispiriting when it actually happened.

How long had he been searching for him? The divine doctor was the only hope to treat the emperor’s physical condition.

“We’re still keeping an eye on him. Should we forcibly bring him in?”

“That’s enough.”

“But Your Majesty’s…”

“Isn’t he not easily controlled for a reason?”

A Sword Master accompanies the divine doctor. Ever since his life was saved when he was on the brink of death, he has always been by the divine one’s side.

It was certain that they had noticed the Imperial Intelligence Agency watching them.

“If the Lord Faorn and I move together…”

“What about the imperial palace if you two leave? Do you think they’ll just sit still?”

“We could go secretly, quietly…”

“Would that be possible? Moreover, even if we forcibly bring the divine doctor, there’s no guarantee he’ll provide proper treatment.”

Rudehrn couldn’t find any words to refute. In fact, he knew it was impossible.

It was just a thoughtless suggestion made out of his desire to save the emperor.

“It can’t be helped. We must prepare now.”

“Your Majesty…”

Rudehrn looked at the emperor with worried eyes.

“Don’t look at me like that. It’s disgusting.”

“The timing is not good.”

“Then, do you have any other way?”

Once again, Rudehrn couldn’t find an answer. The emperor’s words were completely correct.

There’s no way to appease the angry hearts of the empire’s people.

If the emperor doesn’t move even after a city has disappeared, it means he’s unqualified to be emperor.

The nobles, not just the common people, will unite and start a rebellion.

“But Your Majesty’s health…”

The reason Rudehrn was trying to dissuade him was that the emperor’s physical condition had severely deteriorated.

The doctor in charge of the emperor told him that he had about 6 months to a year left.

Now, even pretending to be fine was becoming difficult, and rumors about the emperor’s worrying condition had started to circulate in the palace recently.

The impact of the emperor’s death would be huge. A war with an opponent whose location is not even known well will take at least a year or more.

If the emperor dies while troops are away due to the war, it’s hard to predict how the struggle for his position will unfold.

Internal division during a war with a formidable enemy would surely lead to external collapse.

“With the divine one’s refusal, there’s no other way anyway.”

“Perhaps if you were to choose one of your children…”

“Rudehrn!”

The emperor shouted and then violently coughed. Blood phlegm bubbled up.

Nevertheless, his fierce gaze towards the Sword Master was intense. Rudehrn didn’t back down.

“Your Majesty, forgive my impertinence, but haven’t you already decided on one in your heart?”

After glaring at Rudehrn silently for a moment, the emperor opened his mouth.

“You, haven’t you seen by my side?”

Rudehrn immediately realized he was talking about killing his older brother. He was involved in that incident too.

“This position isn’t something you can obtain just because someone gives it to you. It must be seized by oneself.”

“But, isn’t the situation different from your time, Your Majesty?”

“…”

“At this rate, the empire might collapse.”

“Well. Isn’t something not seized by oneself also easily lost?”

Rudehrn didn’t agree with the emperor’s stubbornness. But he couldn’t argue further. In fact, he had already crossed the line quite a bit.

If it weren’t for him who had been by the emperor’s side for a long time, his head would have been cut off long ago.

He had known about that incorrect thought the emperor held for a long time. It was an obsession born from the trauma of killing his own brother.

However, there was no one on the continent who could touch on that. The other party was the emperor of the empire, after all.

“Do we still not know their location?”

“…Yes. We’ve confirmed they’re beyond the northern limit line, but we’re still investigating the exact location.”

“It’s taking quite long. How has the empire come to this?”

“I apologize.”

“It must all be due to my lack of virtue.”

“That’s not true.”

“First, prepare the advance party to send to Vasto.”

***

As expected, the devil worshippers had abandoned and left Vasto. The devilish dragon that was said to have appeared had also vanished. The last sighting was that it flew towards the north.@@novelbin@@

Nevertheless, the empire sent an advance party to the ruined Vasto. Well, it was a natural thing to do. They couldn’t pretend not to know.

The number of personnel was quite large for an advance party. Sword Master Faorn was also included.

But from my perspective, knowing the internal circumstances, it didn’t seem like they were moving to engage in immediate combat.

There were knights and elites for battle, but there were more soldiers doing engineering work.

I thought they might be planning to build an outpost in the northern region after checking Vasto out of duty.

‘With the empire in the position of being attacked first and all cities on high alert, the possibility of a surprise attack is almost non-existent.’

I think it’s not a bad choice. It’s impossible to move the entire army right away anyway.

Large-scale troop movements require preparation.

Moreover, the devil worshippers don’t need to attack the advance party.

From their perspective, it’s best to gather as much as possible and then have the devils step in.

Even after the advance party left, Chenarus was extremely busy.

Elite soldiers train hard even in peacetime, but most soldiers continue their own livelihoods when it’s not wartime.

Because these people had to be recalled, Chenarus was in a state of chaos everywhere.

The market was so crowded with people out to buy food supplies that it was hard to take a step.

It wasn’t just ordinary people who were busy. Nobles and imperial descendants were also moving busily.

It’s an unexpected war.

In fact, after the war with the West, almost everyone judged that there wouldn’t be a bigger event than that.

That’s why there were many nobles courting Erendil. Because the power of military achievements wouldn’t change easily.

Therefore, this war was an opportunity for the princes to change the atmosphere. They were all gritting their teeth in determination.

I kept an eye on all three princes while watching Mateo’s bar. Honestly, it was quite physically demanding.

In fact, I couldn’t observe all of them simultaneously, so it wasn’t very certain.

But it couldn’t be helped. It’s better to observe the direction of everyone’s actions a little bit rather than choosing just one.

I concluded that the right answer was to look closely if I detected any unusual behavior among them.

‘Well, they were all similar.’

The second prince was focusing on internal consolidation rather than checking the first prince. It’s the right choice.

In war, you can’t attack your allies, so it’s wise to build up your own strength.

There wasn’t much to observe about the third prince. He had almost no supporting nobles and didn’t visit Mateo’s bar.

I thought I should probably focus on observing him after the war starts.

Meanwhile, while watching the movements of the first prince’s confidant, I spotted a point that could be utilized.

Duke Benim. I caught him siphoning off a few magic bombs while managing supplies for war preparation.

‘It’s a common occurrence, though.’

Magic bombs are valuable strategic assets. Having them separately could change the tide of battle.

His original thought was probably to stock up extra for his own troops.

But what’s noteworthy is that Duke Benim is a great enemy of Duke Jonau.

Their families have been on bad terms for generations.

‘Magic bombs. The scale is much larger than I thought.’

If I skillfully manipulate the situation…

It seemed like I could take out both the first and second princes simultaneously before the war. A good inspiration came to mind too.

‘The problem is that there’s not enough time.’

It can’t be helped. It’s urgent, but I’ll have to move tonight right away.

Author's Thoughts

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