Ch.11237. I Don’t Peek into the Future

In the pitch-black darkness, within this ritual space where only the two of us remained.

It spoke.

“The fate must be changed.”

The Demon King laid out this premise.

“The source of all those rumors about you conspiring with the Demon King is likely your Empress. Though they may have spread differently than intended, it’s ultimately thanks to Melineos remembering her prophetic dream.”

“…Prophetic dream?”

“I deliberately sealed it away, but even that wasn’t permanent.”

If Melineos had remembered the content of that prophetic dream immediately after waking up back then.

You probably wouldn’t be here now.

“So she could link me with the Demon King without any doubt, make that determination. Is that what you mean?”

“Probably. So saying that Alesia, whom you trusted, leaked that information would be somewhat inaccurate. Still, I don’t know what happened after the rumors spread. Perhaps she’s suffering or has suffered under the pretext of concealing this.”

“That’s…”

Troublesome.

Thinking about it, I should have considered this earlier.

I vaguely assumed that she would be fine.

How irresponsible of me…

“I didn’t doubt her. But it wasn’t absolute. In a way, I hoped she would leak it somehow to protect herself. I unconsciously accepted that. That’s why I didn’t feel particularly anxious about her safety. That’s why I didn’t consider it seriously, right?”

“……”

“Because you thought the memories you had with her were enough. Even if she betrayed your expectations, that would be a matter for a possible future. So you thought it didn’t matter, right?”

“……”

I had nothing to say.

Thinking again, I wonder if my reasoning was severely flawed and twisted.

“Should I make inquiries, and intervene immediately if the situation is serious?”

“That judgment is yours to make. It’s your life, isn’t it? You’re gaining power, so why are you consulting someone about this? Do you need someone to hold your hand while taking baby steps?”

“……”

This is why dependency is problematic.

I suppose it’s also a problem that my mind has become rigid in this area due to focusing solely on training.

“I understand.”

It wasn’t something to worry too much about.

“Then, let’s go back to what you mentioned earlier. How can fate be changed?”

Melineos’s prophetic dreams are famous.

During the journey of the Nine Heroes, her foresight ability was absolutely crucial.

None of the Nine Heroes was unnecessary.

And before the nine, there were sixteen.

Their sacrifices and devotion contributed to the current peace of the continent.

That was something the entire continent acknowledged.

The only issue, if there was one, was that after the Demon King’s death, most of the Nine Heroes were either from the Empire, exiles, or had migrated to the Empire.

This led to growing resentment from places outside the Empire.

Except for three of the Nine Heroes, the remaining six belonged to the Empire and worked for or on behalf of the Empire.

In Gazef’s case, he went into seclusion immediately after the Demon King’s death due to being bound by a pact with dragons during the journey.

“You’ll need my demonic artifact that’s in the Imperial treasury.”

“…You had something like that too?”

This is news to me.

“Its use isn’t material or phenomenal.”

It was created for one purpose only.

“Fate conversion.”

The artifact known as the ‘Golden Afterimage.’

Very few know its true nature and use.

And to think that someone who knows about it would involve even himself to make use of it.

How utterly vexing.

“Fate conversion? What does that mean?”

“I have converted fate several times. That artifact was formed from the remnants, traces, and attributes of my history and origin.”

Just as divine beasts and spiritual creatures have spiritual elixirs and divine pills.

High-ranking beings of the demon realm seek to possess demonic artifacts befitting their status.

Without these, they typically possess spiritual elixirs, divine pills, or demonic cores that might be found in divine beasts, spiritual creatures, or demonic beasts.

That’s why killing high-ranking beings and collecting their remains or demonic cores is a common practice.

Or rather, it’s encouraged and the demon realm itself is structured that way.

That’s not to say that collecting these will absolutely make one stronger or allow one to fully inherit the abilities of that being.

But it might grant some demonic power, or aspects of that power.

There are cases where beings with similar qualities, attributes, or constitutions can inherit that power to the maximum extent.

That’s why demons naturally developed a sense of community through bloodlines, lineages, tribes, and so on.

“But if the owner dies unexpectedly, everything becomes futile. From the perspective of passing things down, this is truly an inconvenient structure.”

Nevertheless, traditionally after the death of a leader, chief, or head.

Determining who will succeed them, passing down even a portion, or researching special techniques to transmit the results as completely as possible—all of this could be considered esoteric knowledge.

“Demonic artifacts are convenient in that sense. They’re easy to hand over. And I can use them myself right away.”

What’s called a ‘Mabogu’ in the middle realm.

“Just look at the powers acquired by your princess and that Mines woman. They’re also part of the Great Demon King’s legacy. Usually, leaving behind even one in a lifetime would be remarkable, but the Great Demon King scattered more than a dozen. I used my authority as the current Demon King to take some of the masterpieces, and by offering to give them away, I was able to bring countless legions on an expedition to the middle realm. Even those who are now known to have betrayed me as the Eden Levan Alliance were able to quickly adapt to middle realm society because of such massive bribes. Your princess mastering that power is also a result of this.”

“……”

This must be a secret history.

Even in the middle realm, not many would know this truth.

“Due to the nature of the demon realm, it’s impossible to continue the Great Demon King’s legacy and will there. Rather than that, bringing it to the middle realm and spreading it to the culture and civilization itself is better. In the demon realm, due to the concept of principle rate, a Demon King can nullify and reset everything if determined… but that’s not possible here.”

“So in the end, your expedition was aimed at preserving your culture, traditions, technology, and history… is that what you mean?”

“That was one of the intentions. And now, that has become the responsibility and duty of our kin who live among you. At the same time, that will be the only support for them to survive in the middle realm. Otherwise… would there be any reason for the inhabitants of the middle realm to accept and keep alive those who were once foreigners and enemies of the continent?”

A harsh story.

“No matter how vast a territory is, there’s always a limit. When civilization harmonizes, systems are established, and technology advances to bring stability, the population will grow exponentially while territory shrinks. Then it will lead to resource issues. Things that have no use now might become more valuable than gold someday, and whoever possesses them will gain hegemony… As a head of state and person in power, could one ignore this? Absolutely not.”

This isn’t simply talking about a few years or decades from now.

Perhaps even further in the future.

100 years, 200 years, or beyond.

Somehow, I had that intuition or premonition.

At least, that’s how it felt.

“I’ve rambled on, but anyway, see for yourself what future Melineos saw.”

And so.

Cariel was able to glimpse part of what was seen from the perspective of Magic Empress Melineos.

Specifically, the Empress lying in bed, unable to properly control her body, and Elhermina, who had lost an arm and looked miserable, dreaming that Cariel himself had become the Demon King, that they would confront him, and that even his father, Lueld, would deliberately confront Cariel who had become the Demon King.

“……”

The Demon King.

Me, of all people?

Why?

“You naturally wouldn’t want that. But think about it this way.”

What if something so shocking and desperate happens to you that it drives you to that point?

And not just once or twice, but repeatedly, until you become that way?

“……”

Cariel closed his eyes and fell into light contemplation.

His consciousness expanded.

Like a sprout emerging from the ground, becoming a tree, and extending its branches.

He vaguely observes the sight of his entire life splitting and dividing into countless choices and various variables.

“I get the general idea.”

“Will you also be able to glimpse the future as time passes?”

“…No. I don’t think so.”

The moment one glimpses the future, the moment that future takes on certainty.

One becomes, in some way, a bystander and observer, nothing more, nothing less.

Just as Grandeus was caught in that trap and eventually forced to abandon his pioneering of fate, throwing away his own life while hoping for a future day.

“I glimpse possibilities. Like anyone can do, thinking, predicting, and speculating.”

Though the method and results would be quite different from the general outcome.

“Yes, I thought so. My demonic artifact would be of little use to someone who glimpses the future.”

When the Great Demon King asked if she wanted to glimpse the future.

The only one who immediately answered that she didn’t want to know such things in advance.

Was her alone.

That’s why she was once called the Eye of the Great Demon King.

Eyes symbolize wisdom.

Not the right arm, not the left arm.

Not his legs, not his heart, but his eyes.

And the gold that became the final victor claimed wisdom.

“There’s a line and degree to knowing. Wisdom is ultimately about keeping that line while crossing back and forth without falling in.”

Not committing failures and missteps because of it.

There can be errors, but mistakes are another matter.

“You have to fall and get hurt to learn to run and walk carefully, to examine the ground you’re stepping on. So what you gain from errors are lessons. It’s just important that those errors don’t lead to fatal damage… though that’s not easy.”

“……”

“If I were to summarize what you should pursue from now on, it would be roughly this.”

As the Demon King snapped his fingers, characters made of light appeared in the air.

First, fulfill the contract with me.

“I won’t waste breath explaining what this means.”

A confrontation with his father.

And a decisive victory from it.

“……”

When you think about it, this was also the fundamental reason why Cariel had no choice but to build his strength.

Otherwise, everyone connected to Cariel would become extremely unhappy.

That unhappiness, guaranteed by the Demon King, would far exceed what could normally be endured.

Not to mention what Cariel himself would experience.

“And.”

Her slender index finger points to something else.

Second, the grudge of the demon world tree.

“If you’re not going to the demon realm, you’ll eventually need to contact this world’s world tree and somehow settle this matter.”

Given the timing, it’s clear that’s what attached itself then.

If you’re curious about this, you could dig deeper.

Incidentally, you might also learn about the past you’ve lost.

“And third.”

Third, deciding how to deal with the prophecy of becoming the Demon King.

Will you accept it, or reject it?

And if you reject it.

How will you convert and pioneer your fate?

“If I were to count, these are the three main issues? What do you think?”

“……”

The past.

I’d thought I should find out someday, but now that the fact is before me… I feel a bit strange.