Ch.115Survivors

January of the 25th year of the Amurtart Calendar.

Until the day the new year began, the armies of the Allied Nations remained in Fahrenheit City, helping with various reconstruction efforts.

This was partly for the refugees of Fahrenheit who were shivering in the cold with nowhere to go, and partly as minimal compensation for the enthusiastic looting they had done in the past.

Although Fahrenheit had lost over 1.4 million lives due to the uprising of heretics and the invasion of demons, there were still 8.6 million people remaining in Fahrenheit. Once the social infrastructure was rebuilt, excluding damaged residential areas, people could immediately live there again.

Ironically, thanks to Amurtart having stolen all intellectual property in the past, there was no complete loss of what had been accumulated over 300 years.

Of course, this was because everything had already been plundered before, but the fact that secondary damage could be prevented was something to be grateful for. Fahrenheit was still a nation with the potential to rise again.

With over 1.4 million people dead, if it had been Amurtart, the nation would likely have collapsed immediately.

Although they would have to rebuild from the foundation, the 8.6 million people could provide enough labor to reconstruct the nation.

“Thank you… truly thank you… As the Grand Duke of Fahrenheit… I express immeasurable gratitude.”

Before the representatives of the Allied Nations, Marcus, the Grand Duke of Fahrenheit, knelt down to express his gratitude.

Of course, considering his social position, this performance took place inside the representatives’ tent, with strict information control.

The subjects of Fahrenheit had suffered invasions by humans and demons over just a few decades. If they were to see their spiritual pillar, the Grand Duke, kneeling before those who were once invaders, another riot could break out.

One could argue that the people of Fahrenheit were being ungrateful, since it was the Allied Nations’ army that actually liberated Fahrenheit, but human hearts are more easily swayed by evil than good.

As evidence, wasn’t this how Fahrenheit ended up in ruins?

“You may rise now, Grand Duke of Fahrenheit. Through this, the suffering of Fahrenheit has been remembered under heaven, and the constellations of heaven and the celestial angels will bestow blessings upon your country.”

The head of the delegation spoke thus as he helped the Grand Duke to his feet.

Despite being an immortal ruler, Marcus’s face was deeply lined with wrinkles, suggesting he had endured severe mental anguish. His ceremonial robes showed patches of mending here and there, indicating how dire the circumstances had been.

Now that Fahrenheit had been saved, the Allied Nations decided, after gathering opinions from the delegation, to disband their army again in April, about three months later.

During those three months, the Allied Nations’ army gathered scattered Fahrenheit refugees, maintained public order in the city, and repaired collapsed buildings and roads. In April of the 25th year of the Amurtart Calendar, as warm spring breezes began to blow, the Allied Nations officially disbanded for the second time after a final military parade in downtown Fahrenheit.

*

“Burn them! Burn them!”

“Filthy heretics! Be consumed by the flames of purification!”

“Kill them! Kill them!”

Downtown Amurtart.

Although it would be several weeks before the 200,000 soldiers returned, the city was burning hot.

It was literally burning, but it wasn’t war—it was because criminals were being placed on pyres.

Through the joint efforts of police forces and religious authorities, many cultists and heretics who had been secretly operating in Amurtart were arrested en masse. They had been planning an armed uprising, taking advantage of the security vacuum created by the Fahrenheit crisis and the large-scale military deployment.

Not just in Amurtart, but the situation was similar in other countries. Some had already experienced armed uprisings and physical conflicts with local authorities.

However, as evidenced by the endless stream of people being tied to pyres in Amurtart, their plans failed miserably for the following reasons:

First, the Allied Nations had experienced tremendous prosperity after the last war, naturally raising living standards and significantly weakening heretical forces that fed on the suffering of the lower classes.

With no new converts joining their sects, their power inevitably weakened. As the economy boomed, public authority grew stronger accordingly. So when these emaciated heretics attempted an armed uprising, their combat effectiveness was predictably pathetic.

Moreover, the states they planned to overthrow weren’t massive nations like Fahrenheit or Amurtart, but small countries that celebrated when their population exceeded 100,000. The number of heretics, burdened by being both secret organizations and pseudo-religions, was pitifully small—just dozens, or at most a few hundred.

Since they would die at the hands of authorities if they didn’t revolt immediately, the uprising was inevitable, but they forgot that they were destined to die at the hands of public authority regardless.

And the result was…

Whoosh!!

“Aaaaargh!!! Master!!! Great Warrior!!!”

“This is what happens to those who stray from the path of angels!”

This was the scene of heretics burning to death on pyres and the masses cheering at the sight.

Only a nation of Fahrenheit’s caliber could open the gates of hell and demonstrate enough power to incite the masses for years. If it had been a smaller nation like Amurtart, they would have been caught and burned at the stake long ago.

Currently, Amurtart’s population is 2.6 million.

And now that all the heretics have burned to death, the population is still 2.6 million.

As the lack of difference suggests, slaves of malevolent beings are destined to face meaningless deaths.

*

“This is ridiculous. After going through all that hell, they still have a population of over 8.6 million? Tough bastards.”

Tiberius, the ruler of Amurtart, was clicking his tongue in his palace office while looking at Fahrenheit’s remaining population figures.

Despite so many deaths, Fahrenheit still had more than three times Amurtart’s population, which made him envious rather than sympathetic.

While some were implementing major childbirth promotion policies and indiscriminately accepting immigrants at ports to exceed a population of 3 million, Amurtart’s population had stagnated, perhaps having already accepted all the immigrants they could.

Yet that country, after being beaten by thirty-five nations and having the gates of hell opened with 1.4 million dead, still had a population that rounded to 9 million, or even 10 million if rounded up again. This made Tiberius reflect once more on why he had been so harsh toward Fahrenheit.

“Damn it. At this rate, I’ll die of old age before reaching 10 million.”

Tiberius grumbled as he began processing the documents in front of him.

Although it was still daytime, the decorations covering the windows prevented much light from entering, so two candlesticks served as light sources on the desk. One of the shorter candles was gradually reaching the end of its life.

The document Tiberius was currently processing concerned budget allocation, as Amurtart’s growing status necessitated the development of new territories.

And to develop new territories, fragments of the Earth’s Core were needed.

With Amurtart’s current accumulated capital, acquiring a couple of Earth Core fragments circulating in the market wouldn’t be difficult.

However, due to a promise made to his advisor, Tiberius was meticulously documenting the reasons for purchasing the Earth Core fragments, the expected positive effects, and the amount to be spent in the budget execution document, which was taking unexpectedly long.

“Let’s see… this should do it…”

After drafting what he considered a thorough budget execution document, he called his advisor and asked if there was anything that needed to be modified.

“Is there anything that needs to be changed?”

“Let me see… hmm… nothing in particular. You’ve done well. Now we need to purchase the Earth Core fragments… shall I call a merchant with connections?”

“No, I already have someone in mind.”

Tiberius said this and summoned Allen, the messenger with whom he had previously become acquainted regarding the Adventurers’ Guild matter.

“It’s an honor to see you again, Your Majesty. I heard you had a task for me…?”

“Welcome. It’s time for Amurtart to embark on territorial expansion again. I want to purchase Earth Core fragments, and I’d like the Adventurers’ Guild to secure them for us.”

“Earth Core fragments…”

Allen murmured, stroking his neatly trimmed chin.

Indeed, the Adventurers’ Guild was closely connected to merchants and markets worldwide, making it one of the few organizations capable of acquiring Earth Core fragments. Tiberius’s decision to entrust them with the proxy purchase was not a bad choice.

“The budget is 6,000 gold coins. You need to obtain as many Earth Core fragments as possible within this budget. Understood? I’ll give you a deadline of five years.”

“On behalf of the Adventurers’ Guild, I will obey Your Majesty’s command.”

Allen knelt to receive Tiberius’s order, then left the palace and headed straight to the Adventurers’ Guild to relay Tiberius’s message.