Episode 247
Park Hyun-ah blinked her eyes repeatedly.
Emperor of the Dracaen Empire?
Did I hear things because I was sleepy?
“what?”
“The Emperor of the Dracaen Empire would like to meet you.”
As expected, I heard it correctly.
Park Hyun-ah suddenly got up.
“What the hell are you talking about all of a sudden?” “I don’t know what it is, but that gentleman Olaven said. The emperor wants to see us.”
“why?”
“He said he couldn’t tell me why. He said we should meet and talk about it.”
Park Hyun-ah crossed her arms with her brows furrowed.
“Hmm, something is fishy…” “I agree. There’s no way he’d want to see our faces now. He must have some ulterior motive, but I can’t figure it out.”
Until now, we have only had contact with the Dracaen Empire through Olaven Grimire.
I found out later that he was like the emperor’s right-hand man.
One of the three most powerful people in the Drassen Empire, excluding the Emperor.
That’s why I had no trouble working with Olaven Grimier.
The same goes for the Dracaen Empire.
This means that there is no reason for the Emperor to ask to meet him in person now.
“Hero! Could this be a trap or something!?”
Then Rachel, who was listening to the story, intervened.
“What kind of trap is this all of a sudden?” “You’re calling the hero and trying to do something about it!” “So what’s the benefit to the Dracaen Empire?”
“Umm…”
Rachel, who had been rolling her eyes here and there in thought, smiled bashfully.
“I don’t know.”
“That’s right. If you just look at the situation, it looks like a trap, but what I’m saying is that there’s nothing for them to gain by doing that.”
From the perspective of the Dracaen Empire, Choi Hyun-seok and Park Hyun-ah are like benefactors.
How could I not be grateful when you take care of the dangerous Gatren and Deusis Church on your own?
In fact, Olaven Grimier said the same thing.
“Sir Choi Hyun-seok. Sir Park Hyun-ah. I am always grateful to you. When the war is over, please visit our empire’s capital. I will treat you.”
I don’t think what I said back then was a lie.
No, in the first place, there was no need to summon them to the capital of the Dracaen Empire to deal with Choi Hyeon-seok and Park Hyeon-ah.
Because you can fall into Gatren’s trap by giving him wrong information.
You can blow your nose without using your hands, but getting blood on yourself is stupid.
That’s the way Drasen has insisted on up until now.
“I don’t know.”
“I don’t know.”
“I don’t know!”
No matter how much I think about it, I still can’t figure out what the intention is.
I wish he’d just tell me the reason, but he absolutely said no.
In the end, Choi Hyun-seok made a decision.
“Just go.”
Come to think of it, my time with the Dracaen Empire wasn’t that short.
A history built on trust rather than friendship.
They were more trustworthy because they were always thorough in calculating profit and loss and made cool-headed judgments.
“I think there must be a reason this time too.” “Yeah. I don’t know what to think about, but I’ll go. I’ve been helped so far.”
Thus began the journey to Draxel, the capital of the Dracaen Empire.
***
Several years have passed since Choi Hyun-seok came to this world.
I thought I had adapted to most things by then.
Magic, monsters, war, and even lifestyle.
I thought that since I was used to everything, there would be no more surprises in this world.
Until reaching Draxel, the capital of the Dracaen Empire.
“This place is no joke.”
Choi Hyun-seok’s mouth fell open.
I couldn’t close my mouth at the panoramic view of the city below.
“What’s so big…?”
The end of the city is not in sight.
Even tall buildings like skyscrapers were visible.
The neatly maintained streets were filled with people wearing clothes that were obviously of high quality.
The roads, which were presumed to be exclusively for carriages, were also tangled like spider webs.
“I didn’t know there was a city like this in this world…” “I was shocked at first, too. I thought only savages lived here.”
Although her expression is a bit harsh, I agree with what she said.
Even if we say that the cities that Choi Hyun-seok visited were only slightly better than the Middle Ages on Earth.
The largest city, if any, was Delos, the capital of the Oddrian Union, but it didn’t feel like it was organized at all.
A feeling of extreme chaos with so many people crowded into a small area.
It was on a different level from the neat city we see now.
“Draxel is the largest and most developed city on the continent. Its population alone must be over 1.5 million.” “1.5 million…? I think the population of the Mariott Kingdom was 2 million…” “The city’s defenses are even more impressive. When Draxel enters a defensive posture, no one, legend or otherwise, can enter. I think I would have to knock for half a day to barely make a single passage.”
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The more I listened, the more shocking it became.
Should we really call it the strongest country on the continent?
Olaven Grimier has always been secretly proud of his country, and when I met him in person, I could see why.
In fact, the expressions on the faces of people walking down the street are all bright.
Not feeling any threat.
I felt the composure of a powerful country.
“I’m sorry. I kept you waiting.”
A familiar voice was heard from behind.
I looked back and saw Olaven Grimire approaching.
“It’s okay. It’s fun to look around.” “Haha! Is this your first time visiting Draxel?” “It’s just my first time seeing Dracaen. It’s so much more impressive than I thought, I can’t close my mouth.” “That’s why I said it at the beginning. We already have everything.”
“ah…”
Sure enough, Olaven had said something like that during our first meeting.
“We, the Dracaen Empire, do not want any more wars. We already have everything.” “The most fertile land on the continent. A powerful army. All kinds of precious goods. They all belong to the Dracaen Empire.”
At the time, I thought it was a delusion or a boast.
But, I understand now that I’ve experienced it myself.
Olaven Grimier was simply stating the plain facts.
“Can we go to the kingdom soon? His Majesty is waiting.”
“Yeah.”
He did not come here to ask why the Emperor was looking for him.
You’ll find out soon anyway.
However, Choi Hyun-seok had another curiosity.
“Can I ask you one thing?” “Please speak freely.” “Just by looking at the city, you can tell that Dracen’s national power is the greatest on the continent.”
Of course, we cannot understand all of a country’s power simply by looking at the level of urban development.
However, looking at such an overwhelming figure, no one would doubt that Dracaen is the strongest nation on the continent.
“Why are you leaving Gatren alone? Even if it’s a little annoying, why don’t you just close your eyes and sweep it away?” “Hmm, there are two main reasons for that.”
Olaven Grimier continued his explanation, stroking his handsome beard.
“The first is, as I said then, that Your Majesty no longer wants war.”
This is also the reason I heard it at our first meeting.
Choi Hyun-seok waited for Olaven’s next story.
“The other is that Gatren is also a power that cannot be ignored.” “Is Gatren that strong? So much so that Dracaen should be afraid?” “Well, that’s not it. According to our analysis department’s judgment, the power ratio between Dracaen and Gatren is 7 to 3. Even if war breaks out, we can easily take down Gatren. However…”
Olaven Grimire let out a small sigh.
“They have the Deusis Church.”
“ah.”
“The Deusis religion is the largest religion on the continent. If Gatren and Deusis were to unite, the power ratio would be reversed to 4 to 6. Considering the Iron Demon that Gatren has been hiding recently, it would actually be around 3 to 7.”
If the power ratio is 3 to 7, you can practically say that you will lose unconditionally.
Even a powerful country like this cannot help but lose.
I could see once again how great the Gatren and Deusis churches are.
“Wouldn’t it be amazing for two people to fight against such a formidable opponent alone? Haha!”
While we were talking.
The group soon arrived in front of a huge castle wall.
The city wall running through the city center looked like it would be incredibly strong.
“This is the inner wall. If you go through here, you will come to the palace straight away.” “Let’s go straight. I wonder how great the palace will be.”
***
As expected, the palace was magnificent.
The architectural techniques themselves seemed different from those of other kingdoms.
A huge amount of mana flowed, seemingly protecting the entire palace.
Choi Hyun-seok will probably have to go through quite a bit of trouble to destroy this palace.
‘The interior is also very well decorated…’
The inside of the palace was decorated with all kinds of treasures.
And yet, there is no feeling of frivolity at all.
It was gorgeous, elegant, and serious.
Just walking down the hallway gave me the illusion of increased class.
“Once you pass through this gate, the Emperor will be waiting for you.” “Is there anything else I should pay attention to?”
If it were normal, I would have just opened the door and gone in, but because of the atmosphere, I couldn’t help but ask.
“Well… As long as you don’t act or say anything too rude, it won’t matter. His Majesty isn’t that strict. Don’t worry.”
“All right.”
Finally, the door opens.
Choi Hyun-seok and Park Hyun-ah entered a large hall.
‘It’s simpler than I thought.’
Contrary to expectations that there would be a huge crowd, the huge hall was occupied only by the emperor and his attendants.
The emperor smiled as he watched the incoming party.
“Welcome to the Empire, warriors! I am Lambert, Emperor of Dracen.”
At the emperor’s words, Park Hyeon-ah knelt on one knee and bowed her head.
Choi Hyun-seok imitated her movements as best he could.
“Raise your heads. I have no intention of forcing the etiquette of this country upon you.” “Thank you for your consideration.”
For some reason, Park Hyun-ah’s voice sounds sophisticated.
Is this really Park Hyun-ah?
This is something that could never happen unless you were switched while you were busy sightseeing in the city.
Choi Hyun-seok whispered quietly to Park Hyun-ah.
“Where did you hide your sister?”
“Shut up.”
Park Hyun-ah was right.
That is, even the arrogant and gangster-like Park Hyeon-ah is polite in front of the Emperor of Dracaen.
While Park Hyun-ah and the emperor were talking about this and that.
Choi Hyun-seok looked at Emperor Lambert.
‘Certainly… he doesn’t seem like an ordinary person.’
It’s definitely not a very powerful spell.
Although he is the emperor, he has trained to some extent and has the mana of a normal knight, but that is all.
I didn’t feel any great power.
His appearance wasn’t particularly special either.
Although he was handsome, he wasn’t the kind of handsome man that would dazzle your eyes.
Although he was handsome, he was quite plump and his body was far from being extremely well-trained.
But why is that?
Choi Hyun-seok felt overwhelmed by the emperor.
‘It’s strange.’
Maybe it’s because I’ve seen such a great city and palace.
Because all of those things belonged to the emperor.
But, you can know it instinctively.
It’s not because of those material things that I feel overwhelmed.
‘It’s definitely not magic… Should I call it energy? There’s something that controls people.’
Naturally flowing majesty and absolute authority.
You could call it charisma.
I had felt this to some extent when dealing with Olaven Grimire, but the Emperor was on a different level.
‘Was he born that way? Or was his position made him that way?’
At that time, I was having a series of worries.
Suddenly, Park Hyun-ah tapped me on the shoulder.
“What are you doing? Come to your senses.”
“Oh, sorry. What were you talking about?”
I was so focused on observing that I couldn’t hear the conversation at all.
“I was just about to ask you a favor.” “A favor? What favor?”
For a moment, the emperor’s eyes fell deeply.
A heavy atmosphere suffocates the air.
Finally he opened his mouth.
“Please. Please die.”
