Do you hate me? Leffenhardt thought for a moment. Hatred? I don’t think that’s really the case. No matter how attached he was to other races, he never regretted being human. He wasn’t so dissatisfied with himself that he wished he had been born as an orc, an elf, a dwarf, or a troll. Ah, well, since Siris is an elf, she would have been able to live together for a long time if she were an elf too… … I just thought about it.
“I don’t think so.”
Marceline asked again.
“Then do you like humans?”
There was no need to worry this time. Even as a human being, in his eyes, humans have many ugly parts.
“I don’t really like it.”
Marceline nodded as if she knew that would happen.
“I thought you would. “In his past life, which Mr. Reppenhardt told us about, he had no human companions.”
Suddenly, Marceline smiled bitterly.
“It’s a bit funny for me, a dwarf, to say this, but… … Humans aren’t that bad of a breed. If you listen to Mr. Reppenhardt’s words now, it seems that he treats humans as poorly as he treats elves, orcs, trolls, and us dwarves.”
“huh?”
“In your past life, why didn’t you include humans in the army to protect the Antares Empire?”
“Yeah… … I can’t believe it… … Besides, isn’t it their war? I’m sorry for mobilizing you to fight a war that has nothing to do with you… … .”
“Then why did you not include humans in the administrative management that runs the Antares Empire in your past life?”
“Likewise, I can’t believe it… … Moreover, because elves and dwarves live for a long time, they rarely decay. In particular, dwarves can hear the truth, so they are good at making decisions clearly. “I thought it was placed in the right place?”
Marceline laughed as she watched Reppenhardt stutter as if making excuses.
“therefore… … Are you saying that after accepting people as members of a nation, they were not given any obligations or rights to maintain that nation?”
“Is that how you interpret it?”
Leffenhardt scratched his head. He thought he had established a policy that would not cause any human beings to complain. So humans only collected basic taxes and did not use any coercive rule other than that. The difficult war was fought by orcs, trolls, or the monsters he ruled. Complex administrative and political matters were handled by dwarves and elves. I thought humans were just allowed to live comfortably and enjoy only what they wanted… … .
“So, aren’t you saying that humans aren’t even given the opportunity to participate in administration or politics?”
“It works much better without it, so there’s no need to put it in…” … .”
Marceline let out a laugh as she looked at Reppenhardt sweating profusely. And he spoke reproachfully.
“You have done everything to be called the devil.”
“Is that so?”
Repenhardt made a dissatisfied face. I don’t really want to refute what Marceline said, but even so, I think the humans of the Antares Empire lived quite happy lives. Compared to other countries on the continent, there was no corruption, little poverty, and there were no particularly abused people… … .
“This is enough, right? “What’s the problem?”
The old dwarf smiled bitterly as he saw his master grumbling.
“Yes, life has become better for ordinary farmers. But what about the capable ones? Would the world be a good place to live even for knowledgeable and ambitious people like Mr. Reppenhardt, who have the drive and passion to pursue their dreams? “A world where even if you try to dream, you are institutionally blocked, and even if you try to run with momentum, there is no path?”
“… … .”
There was nothing to refute. Reppenhardt pursed his lips. Marceline’s voice became softer.
“Becoming a demon lord does not necessarily mean quenching one’s thirst with fresh blood, ripping off raw flesh, building a mountain with corpses, climbing to the top, and bursting into madness.”
Marceline continued speaking in a gentle but strict tone, like a father admonishing his son.
“If a being with great power tries to move the world according to his own tastes without looking around, listening only to the opinions of those who suit his tastes… … .”
The last words were addressed to Reppenhardt, whose expression hardened.
“That is the devil.”
☆ ☆ ☆
Leffenhardt was lying limply on the chair. He had a lot of stamina, but now he felt like he had lost all his strength. Marceline’s words were so direct that they struck his heart without any filtering.
“You were definitely good, but you were also a devil. “My lord, Leffenhardt.”
It’s always like that.
There is nothing in the world as painful as the truth.
Marceline suddenly tilted her head as she looked at Reppenhardt, who was exhausted and exhausted.
“No, but didn’t I say this in my past life?”
Now that I think about it, I don’t think my past life self would have said something like this. Given his personality, if he had worked for Leffenhardt, he would have said everything he had to say, whether he was hated or not, right?
Then Reppenhardt’s complexion darkened slightly.
Actually, Marceline in her previous life didn’t say anything like this. When Marceline came under Leffenhardt, the atmosphere of massacring dwarves was already prevalent on the continent. Due to the rumor that Demon Lord Reppenhardt was gathering monsters, she was afraid of the dwarf slaves that all humans were gathering in groups.
Many people were killed just because they were dwarves. In such a situation, no matter how wise Marceline was, she couldn’t help but be swept away by her emotions. As a wise representative of God, he did not blindly send hatred towards humans, but he also had no intention of hanging out with them.
That system of the Antares Empire, the system that Marceline is currently criticizing while clucking her tongue, was actually more than half created by Marceline herself in her previous life.
When she told that story, Marceline’s expression hardened.
“Is that so? “I wasn’t in a position to say anything.”
The two sat in silence for a moment. Leffenhardt suddenly scratched his head.
“Anyway, that hasn’t happened yet. All you have to do is do well from now on. cancer.”
he asked.
“Makeline, I have realized the overall problem. So what do I think I should start from now?”
Do not press only with force. However, some level of coercion is necessary to change the world. I understand up to this point. So how should that coercive power be used?
Marceline answered.
“I think the biggest mistake Mr. Repenhardt made in his past life was to steer the confrontation between humans and other races.”
“huh?”
I don’t quite understand. Leffenhardt pressed for an explanation.
“Then what are you telling me to do?”
With a firm voice, Marceline answered.
“Let the races take sides in a human-versus-human plot, not a human-versus-species plot. “He is hated by half of the people, but the perception of the other half of the people will change little by little, even if by force.”
Leffenhardt frowned.
“So, are you saying that we should use tricks behind the scenes to cause humans to fight among themselves and then secretly take sides?”
Marceline chuckled.
“Is there any need to resort to trickery? Even if you leave them alone, humans fight hard among themselves.”
That’s what I heard and saw. Even if Reppenhardt doesn’t do anything, wars still break out from time to time throughout the continent. To gain power, wealth, and territory, disputes between petty countries and forces continue to this day. Even without any tricks, fights between humans exist everywhere in the world.
He sneaks into human conflicts and gains their support. And Marceline’s advice was to institutionally ease the treatment of elves, dwarves, orcs, and trolls.
It was a reasonable-sounding opinion. But Reppenhardt tilted his head.
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“Anyway, will humans give up their prejudices against other races so easily?”
Marceline wasn’t a dwarf stupid enough to expect that much from humans.
“Is that possible? Even so, there would probably be less than 10% of humans who view other races as not slaves. But you can’t be too greedy at the beginning of anything.”
Leffenhardt shook his head. He is never stupid. You can immediately understand what Marceline is talking about.
Pressure by force, change the perception of different races situationally, point out the contradictions of the current world ideologically, and at the same time politically recognize the different races as a force, and revive their culture and history to achieve independence. Even if he tries all of these things, what is not enough is his dream and ambition.
“Wow, that’s a pain in the ass.”
“Think a lot. “This is all the advice I can give.”
Smiling warmly, Marceline looked at the young master in front of her, their savior whom God had appointed. There was more he wanted to say, but he was a wise dwarf, and he knew that it was up to Repenhardt to decide.
It is Leffenhardt who wants to change the world, so his actions must be his own will, his own choices, and his own judgment. If Marcellin’s ideology had been 100% correct, Alport would have chosen him as his savior and not Leppenhardt. All he does is give Reppenhardt more ‘information’ to judge by his advice.
“Umm… … .”
Leffenhardt was lost in thought with a serious expression on his face. Seeing him like that, Marceline stood up.
“Do you have any plans for the future?”
Reppenhardt also came to his senses and stood up.
“For now, I would like to spend some time in Grand Forge. “I need to stay here for about a month.”
The reason Leffenhardt came here, to Grand Forge, was of course to meet Marceline, but there was another reason as well.
“I need to rent Alport’s subterranean sun, Magrim, for about a month.”
Leffenhardt turned toward the stairs. It was soon time to return to the group. Marceline followed behind to see them off.
“I will prepare right away. “We will prepare separate places to stay for the rest of the group.”
“Thank you, Marceline.”
3
A huge demonic beast was roaring on a ridge where the cold north wind blew fiercely, a ridge covered in dark blue fire and pure white snow.
Wow!
It was a Drake, a reptile-type monster with huge skin-like wings and a body measuring up to 30 meters. The wings are already tangled with dozens of ropes and nets, and dozens of arrows and crossbows are scattered throughout the body. A group of about fifty dwarves were surrounding it. They were all warriors with strong muscles, thick armor, and carrying huge axes and hammers.
Drake opened his mouth with a roar. At that moment, a thick smell of sulfur spread, and smoke rose from between the sharp teeth.
Hwaaaaaaa!
Flames scorched over the ground. One of the dwarven warriors screamed.
“It’s breath! “Defense!”
Red flames streaked across the mountain ridge like a whip. A wall of flames rises, and the scorching heat begins to melt the frozen ground. The dwarf warriors all raised their shields to protect themselves from the rushing fire. From behind, two dwarves raised their hands and shouted.
“Al Fort! “Please give us your protection and keep us safe from the flames!”
A gray holy light reminiscent of iron covered the surroundings, bestowing divine protection on the dwarf warriors to increase their resistance to heat. Dwarves naturally have a strong resistance to heat. Because the priest’s protection was there, everyone managed to preserve their bodies even in the flames.
Crrrrr… … .
Drake also clearly looks embarrassed as his secret weapon does not work. In the meantime, the dwarf warriors began firing their crossbows. Once again, dozens of Quarrels flew towards Drake’s entire body. Most of the arrows were blocked by the thick scales and bounced off, but there were quite a few arrows that got stuck in the gaps between the scales. Drake, enraged with pain, began to run wild even more.
Kaaaaagh!
It screams at random, swings its tail repeatedly, and slaps its front paws frantically. The dwarf warriors skillfully dodged and began a counterattack. They rush to all sides of that huge drake, swinging their axes and striking their hammers. A few dwarves were hit by their tails and flew away, but no one screamed. Even when he falls down, he only lets out a shallow groan, and gets up again with his eyes filled with determination to fight.
Although it is not as powerful as the legendary dragon, Drake is a powerful monster that can easily trample on a single human territory. It is a monster that even the most famous knights cannot deal with. However, these fifty or so dwarf warriors were not pushed back at all while facing such monsters.
After repeating the hit-and-run process, the dwarf warriors had drained some of Drake’s energy. One of the dwarves shouted.
“Now, Cardamite!”
“I understand!”
One of the dwarf warriors leapt forward, responding with a loud voice. Holding the huge ax spear tightly in both hands, the dwarf called Cardamit soared above Drake’s head, closing the distance of nearly 20 meters in one go with just one stomp of his foot. It was a speed so processed that it made one wonder how such speed could be achieved with such short legs of a dwarf. Cardamite let out a burst of energy as she raised her ax spear above her head.
“Erratta!”
The blade of the ax spear shined brightly, emitting a dark red brilliance. Just like that, Cardamite swung the ax spear. The dark red auror turned into a huge blade of light and sliced through Drake’s shoulder. The huge wings suddenly snapped and red blood spurted out like a fountain.
Kaaaaa!
Drake screamed in excruciating pain and whipped his head around. Cardamite landed again and slightly bent his knees while holding the ax spear backwards. And he raised the aura of his entire body.
“Ooooooooo!”
In an instant, red-brown aura exploded and swelled all over his body. The dwarven warriors’ method of instantly increasing their strength by resonating with the energy of the earth is being used by applying it to aurors. Cardamite, who instantly amplified his entire body’s Aura by nearly ten times, let out a loud cry and threw down his ax spear.
“good! Haltron!”
Buzz buzz buzz!
The red-brown Auror’s cannonball hit Drake’s torso precisely. It easily cuts through steel-like scales and easily digs through thick muscles, creating a terrifying explosion. There was a loud explosion, and Drake’s blood and flesh fluttered in the air.
As Cardamite gestured in the air, his ax spear, Haltron, was pulled out of its own accord and flew into his grasp again, catching him. Russ, the human swordsman who was fighting alongside Cardamite in his fighting stance, stuck out his tongue.
‘That’s amazing…’ … .’
Russ had already seen the Cardamite battle from the sidelines several times, but he was still impressed every time.
Cardamite, who was just over 150 years old this year, was a fairly young warrior among dwarves. He was also one of only three Aurors in Grand Forge.
When he first learned of the existence of cardamite, the shock he felt was incredible.
There were Auror abilities among the dwarves?
