Ch.1009The Villain’s Job Isn’t Easy

The borderlands of Alvheim had become a battlefield for all-out war between fairies and humans.

Feyrus, anticipating that the core forces of both the Holy State and Hestella would be deployed against the fairies, saw this as an opportunity and devised three plans.

The first plan was to infiltrate the capital of the Holy State using Paulus’s loyal followers, then raid the relic repository of Alhebron and take all the necessary sacred artifacts.

This succeeded with surprising smoothness.

Despite their numbers being greatly reduced by Agnes’s persistent purges, Paulus’s subordinates had stubbornly survived, allowing Feyrus to enter Alhebron with remarkable ease.

Everything proceeded smoothly after that.

Feyrus led the revived Deathknights in a surprise attack on Alhebron’s relic repository, destroying most of the sacred artifacts stored there and stealing only what he needed.

Then, before the garrison troops could mobilize in response to the sudden attack, he quickly withdrew and escaped the capital.

‘Most of their core forces have headed to the great forest, so I could probably crush the remaining troops by force… but there’s no need to take unnecessary risks.’

Feyrus believed that he, Paulus, and the two Deathknights would be sufficient to defeat the garrison troops remaining in the capital.

Yet he chose retreat over combat because he had once been a saint of the Church of Elpinel, effectively the ruler of this place.

Could it be that some lingering attachment to the city he once governed prevented him from completely destroying it, even after raiding it?

Of course not.

The current Feyrus had no such sentimentality.

His choice to withdraw wasn’t for any emotional reason, but simply because of his faith in Alhebron’s clergy.

‘The holy ground of the Great Divine Church guarded only by a garrison that couldn’t even stop one dragon? They left this sacred place with just them to protect it? Impossible. There must be something else.’

The Holy State of Elphirem he remembered was like an onion—peel away one layer and another would appear.

It was a country full of so many secrets that even Feyrus, who had been a saint at the time, knew less than he didn’t know.

And that remained true even now, after he had fallen to become an apostle of the ancient gods and a necromancer.

‘They’re slow to respond now because they haven’t fully assessed the situation… but once they realize I’m here, they’ll do whatever it takes to kill me.’

For example, large-scale miracles that evaporate all mana within a certain area, or divine bombardments that overwhelmingly exceed an individual’s firepower.

Spirit-binding formations that forcibly send souls within an area to the embrace of god, or miracles that summon angels through the sacrifice of priests.

If such things were to appear, even Feyrus would be in trouble.

Although his necromancy had reached a level where he could boast of surpassing even a saint’s spirit binding, formations laid out on a city-wide scale would still be an extremely burdensome threat for him.

That’s why Feyrus chose to retreat.

While he was confident in his ability to handle the garrison troops, if the enraged church orders brought out means he couldn’t anticipate, the outcome would be uncertain.

As a result, he had to abandon his second plan of stealing all the remaining remains of the Great’s Twelve Knights…

‘…Regrettable, but there’s no need to dwell on it. I’ve confirmed that even three Deathknights couldn’t overwhelm the master of Caliburn, let alone the “variable.”‘

Feyrus dismissed his disappointment with a single sigh.

The remaining remains would be nine at most. Perhaps even fewer.

It had been three hundred years since he left the Holy State.

Given the considerable time that had passed, there was no guarantee that the bodies and lingering thoughts of the Twelve Knights would still remain in place.

No, even if they were all still there, it would be meaningless.

That level of force might be enough to defeat the master of Caliburn, but facing both the master of Caliburn and the “variable” simultaneously would likely result in total annihilation.

‘It would be impossible until more of Heaven’s Wall collapses.’

The legendary strength of the Twelve Knights was power unrestrained by Heaven’s Wall, combined with the Oath Swords bestowed by Elpinel and various sacred artifacts.

Their divine power was suppressed by the Wall, the Oath Swords were dangerous to even hold unless corrupted like Maugis, and for the same reason, other sacred artifacts were difficult to equip.

The Twelve Knights revived as Deathknights were so flawed that at least four would be needed to equal one Twelve Knight in their prime.

Even if he gathered all twelve of such forces, could they subdue the “variable” at full strength and execute the master of Caliburn?

Moreover, once Heaven’s Wall collapsed, they too would have the opportunity to grow as much as the original Twelve Knights and Carlos, or even more?

‘…Perhaps it would be impossible even after the collapse.’

Feyrus considered that possibility low. That’s why he didn’t show much attachment to stealing the remains of the Twelve Knights.

To surpass the “variable’s” power with Deathknights, he would need to revive much more ancient warriors to even have a chance.

‘Yes, if I’m going to awaken something, it should be those kinds of beings.’

To subdue the “variable” who was growing insanely beyond expectations, he needed warriors of that caliber.

Warriors from the era when demigods walked the earth. Warriors who strode through the mythic age thousands of years ago, now remaining only as legends of ancient civilization.

Feyrus needed to find and resurrect them.

By tracing back the remnants of ancient times that barely existed in proper records, appearing only as ruins occasionally found in dungeons.

It was a task requiring a great deal of time and patience.

Even though the ‘Father of All’ whispered in his ear about the places he should seek.

—-

Feyrus’s third plan was to divert Haschal’s attention elsewhere, as she would be frantically searching for him after hearing about the theft of sacred artifacts.

‘Counter one incident with another. Creating a more important and urgent incident to divert attention would be best.’

For example, a situation where her home base was under attack.

If such a situation occurred, even Haschal would be too focused on defending her country and retaliating to even think about searching for him for a while.

Even if she could fly, she couldn’t traverse half the continent in a single day.

‘The fifth, the fourth, or perhaps the seventh. Which one should I use?’

After escaping Alhebron and hiding in his sanctuary, Feyrus pondered for a while.

He needed to create a major incident to tie down Haschal, but he wasn’t sure which location would be best for causing chaos—the Dragonic Kingdom of Jin, Baryachrus, or even Hestella’s mainland.

The sixth apostle wasn’t even an option. He had already fulfilled his role by instigating rebellion and civil war in Panam’s political sphere.

Thanks to that, the Imperial forces were already stretched thin dealing with their own defense and intervention in Panam’s civil war, unable to handle anything else.

Even in this serious and important situation where fairies and humans were at war, they could barely send only the forces of the archdiocese due to lack of available legions.

Despite possessing such powerful military might, their hands were completely tied due to ongoing chaos and excessively vast territory.

‘First… let’s check on the fifth’s situation.’

Feyrus decided to contact the fifth apostle, Bernard Failer of the Dragon Kingdom.

Originally affiliated with the Celestial Horse Divine Palace as a Kwonma, he was now in limbo after the Kwonma-Jeongma conflict he had instigated was halted due to Haschal’s intervention and the return of the dragons.

Moreover, with the Celestial Horse Divine Palace now destroyed—no, absorbed—by the royal family of the Dragon Kingdom, he needed to check on the apostle’s current situation.

‘…The sixth reported signs of betrayal. Said he immediately turned when probed slightly.’

The fifth apostle, Kwonma Bernard Failer, harbored resentment toward Feyrus.

He suspected that the other apostles were merely pawns to be used and discarded, despite the pretense of being comrades.

In other words, he was planning to betray Feyrus before being betrayed himself.

And Feyrus already knew this.

The sixth apostle, who had shown the most antagonism toward him during apostle meetings, had actually been his puppet from the beginning.

The conflict with the sixth apostle was merely an act to deceive the other apostles.

The sixth apostle’s role was to pose as a traitor and report any apostles planning actual betrayal to Feyrus.

Bernard Failer had fallen neatly into that trap.

Of course, until now, he had only talked about betrayal without actually committing any treasonous acts, so Feyrus had simply been watching.

Should he use this? Eliminate him? Or just leave him be?

If elimination was the choice, when, at what point, and how should it be done?

– Crackle.

As Feyrus pondered these questions, he heard the sound of the communication crystal in his hand connecting.

‘Connected.’

Feyrus spoke.

“It’s me. I was worried since there’s been no contact, but it seems you’re safe. I heard the Celestial Horse Divine Palace was absorbed by the royal family of Jin. How are things there?”

An obvious lie about being worried and a question to learn about the situation in the Dragon Kingdom. A response came immediately from the other side of the crystal.

“A lowly scoundrel has many curiosities, I see.”

Feyrus’s brow twitched slightly.

It wasn’t Bernard’s voice.

A strange voice with a slight metallic quality. The distinctive voice of dragonborn whose faces had transformed to resemble dragons was coming from the other side of the crystal.

“If you wish to hear about our country’s affairs, come to my palace, kneel, and beg. If I’m in the mood, I might bestow my mercy upon you.”

“…The Dragon King?”

“How rude. Do you not know the proper etiquette that even a worm despised by its own kind should follow?”

Dragon King Cylude.

“Mind your words. The moment my royal voice reaches you, that place becomes my court.”

The communication crystal that should have been with the fifth apostle was now in the hands of the king of the Dragon Kingdom.