Episode 239
* * *
A man was sitting on the Duke’s throne.
As the head of the Saxon Duke’s family, the greatest black magician on the continent, and the one who stands at the top of the Black Tower.
It was a man with the name of Black Knight.
And before the Duke of Saxony, all the vassals serving the Duke’s family knelt down and paid their respects.
“Night Raven Knight Commander Helmut Blackbear! I humbly greet His Excellency the new Duke of Saxony!”
Kuung!
Led by Sir Helmut, the Night Raven knights simultaneously swung their swords vertically.
“Meet the Black Tower Lord.”
Furthermore, the black magicians who reached the new peak of the black magic tower were no exception.
“Haha, damn it. This is why people have to keep their heads straight.”
Master Baro, the leader of the Grave Walkers, muttered as if it were someone else’s business.
The Night Raven Knights, the Elders of the Black Tower, and the Dark Magicians who are trained for battle, and finally the Grave Walkers who operate entirely in the darkness.
A new order and system was there.
And from his throne in the ducal palace, the Duke of Saxony looked down at them in silence.
* * *
Dale was no exception, as was his father once.
Prove yourself by breaking the pinnacle of the Black Tower, and ascend to that position yourself to inherit the name of the Duke of Saxony.
That night.
His father, Alan of Saxony, who had given up his seat, was in his bedroom, looking down silently from the window of the ducal palace.
“Alan.”
His wife Elena called his name from behind him, and Alan turned his head.
“Are you sad that you gave up your position to your son?”
“That’s impossible.”
Alan smiled and shook his head at Elena’s question.
“It was something that had to happen. On the contrary, I am very proud of my son.”
“Then why are you smiling so bitterly?”
“Well, I don’t know. I just need to be where I am… …”
It was Elena who interrupted Alan as he was trying to continue speaking.
“This is still where you are meant to be. There is no place for you to go away.”
Elena whispered as affectionately as ever, and Alan smiled silently at her words. It was indeed true. Just as he had once given his all to protect his wife and son, it would be no exception for his son, who would succeed to the throne of the Duke of Saxony.
“I wonder if I’ve placed too heavy a burden on my son.”
“Was that a heavy burden for you?”
“That’s possible. It’s something you should endure.”
“I’m sure our son will be like that too.”
Elena said. Hearing that, Alan seemed to realize something and remained silent.
* * *
Imperial Parliament.
It is a rare occurrence to see the lords of an empire gathered together in one place.
The last time the Imperial Diet was held was immediately after the Empire’s victory in the War of Unification, and the previous meeting was held to officially announce the war of unification.
And that the council was called together again, and the princes from all parts of the empire were summoned.
Furthermore, the succession ceremony held in the House of Saxony ahead of the Imperial Diet was an event that drove a wedge into the order of power that was beginning to waver.
The new Duke of Saxony, who calls himself the Black Duke.
He was once the Black Prince who was renowned as the greatest genius in the empire, and his wife was also the Archduchess of Lancaster, one of the three great dukes of the empire. She was also a swordsman with the rank of Heavenly Sword.
The two ducal families are united as a couple, and the Drowned Duke Barbarossa is determined to break away from the Empire along with the independence of the Dead Sea Archipelago.
Only a fool would have any reason for the three great dukedoms not to join forces, and it is not the imperial nobles who would not know that fact.
That is why the Imperial Diet that was to be held today had a more important meaning than anything else.
The new order of power, and where the scales will tip, will be decided right here.
──President of the Imperial Council.
In the solemn silence that filled the room, each seat was assigned strictly according to social status.
The secular princes of the Empire, the secular princes, and the representatives of the Imperial Cities.
A position that literally exists to decide the will of the empire.
And among them, sitting in the highest position, was a man.
He who truly stands at the top of this empire.
Arthur the Great, the Golden Monarch.
The 13 princes and princesses who inherited the golden bloodline were also there.
“Duke of Saxony, I humbly present His Majesty the Emperor of the Empire.”
And looking up at the towering golden throne, Dale opened his mouth.
Dale’s wife, Charlotte, the Duchess of Lancaster, is also right there, silently paying her respects.
The Drowned Barbarossa, a man with a wet, rat-like appearance, was also there, as a monarch who claimed independence for the Dead Sea Islands.
The head of the church, the White Tower Lord, and the Heavenly Duke were no exception. Even if the independence of the church he claimed was nothing more than a false scheme to deceive Dale and the Shadow Faction.
Besides them, there were by no means a small number of princes who each claimed independence from the empire.
In other words, this place is by no means a deathbed from which one can never return alive. Rather, the real problem will arise when they cannot return alive.
Understanding that fact, the vassals who claimed independence would also have been able to willingly respond to the summons.
Only in the midst of the extremely dangerous air did the Golden Emperor finally look at Dale.
However, strangely, Dale, who first encountered the Emperor as ‘Dale of Saxony’, felt no feelings of hatred.
Too much time has passed to be swayed by personal feelings.
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For Dale now, taking down that man, the Golden Lord, was simply a task that had to be done.
Therefore, the result of overthrowing the Golden Monarch and his empire does not change.
“Pitch Black.”
Arthur the Great opened his mouth. A deep, heavy voice called Dale’s name, and Dale lowered his head.
“Please speak, Your Majesty.”
“Can you give me even one reason why I shouldn’t behead you right here and now?”
For a moment, the air around them turned cold. But Dale paid no attention and answered.
“Why don’t you cut off my neck?”
Rather, he asked back as if he couldn’t understand.
“If this situation can be resolved with just one title, there is no reason to hesitate to strike my title.”
“… … .”
Arthur the Great remained silent in response to Dale’s question.
“There is only one reason why His Majesty the Duke does not do his part in this place.”
It was the job of the Bloody Duke, Marquis Yuris, to break the silence.
“The values of the empire that Your Majesty pursues are not achieved through the most despicable tricks or schemes, but through the truly just and unquestionable ‘justice of might.’”
The reason the empire built by the Golden Emperor has been able to survive until now is because it has demonstrated overwhelming power that no one can doubt.
The monarch of lies, the empire of lies.
Above all, what Marquis Yuris said wasn’t entirely wrong.
For the Emperor of the Empire to summon the Duke and behead him under the pretext of the parliament is an act that destroys the very definition of power that the Empire has built up so far.
“On behalf of Your Majesty, I hereby address those of you who wish to defy the Empire and Your Majesty.”
As the President of the Imperial Council, the Bloody Duke stood up. There were gasps of breath everywhere.
“Please do so.”
“… … !”
“Those princes who wish to break free from the rule of the Empire and claim independence, let them do so. Those who wish to disown His Majesty the Emperor, let them do so. His Majesty will gladly respect your decision.”
There was a murmur at the unexpected words, but Dale was unmoved.
“And Your Majesty will prove it again before you.”
Proof. What?
“It will not be some despicable lie, trick, or scheme… … but it will prove true power that anyone can be convinced of.”
It was just then.
The circle of blood-red balls accelerated, covering the entire Imperial Council landscape.
And his grimoire, the Book of Blood, was once again rewinding the history of the empire.
There was a heap of ashes. And it was the capital of some nameless kingdom that had once stood up to the Empire.
“You will prove it to your kingdom, your cities, your castles, and your people without fail.”
An overwhelming violence that can never be resisted. The justice of power and violence that the Empire and the Red Tower so desperately cry out for.
The strong take everything. The weak have no choice but to have everything taken away.
“Who is the only strong person on this earth, and what will become of the weak who resists that strong person?”
Screams rang out. The scenes of imperial troops slaughtering and trampling innocents, castles collapsing, and cities burning continued endlessly.
In the words of the weak who resisted the empire.
The nobles gathered in the parliament were terrified, recalling nightmares of the war of unification.
Dale also recalled the nightmare of that day.
And in his previous life, he was not a nightmare person.
He was the one who gave me nightmares.
I didn’t think there was any such thing as personal feelings. But amidst the looting and arson that the Imperial Army trampled, I remembered the leash that bound him and the nightmares he brought.
A merciless imperial hunting dog. An enforcer of justice.
“Doubt. Doubt Your Majesty’s power, the power of the Empire, and our power.”
The Bloody Ball laughed happily. Meanwhile, the words of those who doubted and resisted the Empire continued to spread endlessly.
Crying families, nobles begging for their lives, those who surrendered late and bowed, no one was an exception.
The proof of irresistible violence that anyone could understand continued.
But that was just then.
Phew!
The landscape of history, which the book of blood was endlessly writing, stood still.
“I will follow Your Majesty’s ways.”
Dale opened his mouth, leaving behind the swirling pitch-black magic.
“The justice of power that Your Majesty and the Empire claim, the justice that the strong have everything and the weak have everything taken away.”
“Hoo.”
Dale spoke, and the expressions of the lords claiming independence everywhere froze.
“And I will prove it to you in Your Majesty’s own way.”
“… … !”
At the same time, the expression on the bloody ball froze coldly. The expression on Arthur the Great sitting on the golden throne twitched.
“What are you talking about?”
Finally, after a period of silence, the Golden Monarch opened his mouth.
“I am talking about the truth that cannot be hidden no matter how hard Your Majesty tries to hide it.”
The Shadow Lord answered.
“That I am stronger than you.”
Kuung!
With those words, the world of the Bloody Ball came crashing down. There were murmurs of shock everywhere, but it only lasted for a moment.
Unexpectedly, laughter rang out.
It was the Emperor’s laughter, and the laughter soon turned into madness, and then into a roar.
One with the name of Pendragon.
The golden dragon began to roar.
