Ch.144144. Power

“I have defeated the Demon Lord.”

Mission accomplished.

Just three weeks after setting out, the Hero reported this news directly to the Emperor. He had just escaped from the Demonic Land, with the welcome report that there were no casualties.

The Emperor couldn’t help but gasp.

Three weeks. In some ways, it was just the duration of a standard foreign mission.

Though the amount of bloodshed was enormous compared to the time invested, there was no doubt that the mission had been accomplished at an impossible speed.

While this was truly a monumental achievement, they decided to share this information only with the Emperor himself and a select few.

Was it out of concern that the Hero might threaten imperial authority by riding on public popularity?

That wasn’t really the intention. After all, many commoners wouldn’t even know that the Hero had set out in the first place.

Even if they were to widely announce now that the Hero had defeated the Demon Lord, the reaction would likely be one of bewilderment.

The announcement was delayed solely at the Hero’s request.

“Your Majesty. I haven’t decided on my course of action yet. I would appreciate if you could keep this strictly confidential until I request otherwise.”

Though the Emperor didn’t know what decision the Hero was referring to, he accepted this request.

He then briefly explained to the Hero the recent incidents and accidents that had occurred in the Empire, to help the Hero make whatever decision he was contemplating.

“I see.”

The Hero responded in a subdued tone.

He seemed to think the situation wasn’t as bad as he had feared, yet also appeared to lament how so many colorful events had unfolded in just three weeks. Only the Hero himself knew his true feelings.

After the communication ended, the Emperor leaned his head back and sighed.

But soon after, he mocked himself for sighing.

The Hero had killed the Demon Lord, which would reduce tension at the borders and save military expenses, yet his response was merely a sigh.

He was glad he hadn’t done this while communicating with the Hero.

The Emperor carefully adjusted his posture to avoid getting a cramp, then turned his gaze toward the court magician, who wore a tense expression.

Court magicians who worked in close proximity to the Emperor were typically high-ranking nobles, and were even under magical restrictions for security purposes.

Though the magician was hardly a confidant with whom he would share intimate thoughts, the Emperor now wanted to confide in someone. Even if that someone was an extremely nervous court magician. Better than talking to a wall, at least.

“When I was a prince, I once received praise from my father, the previous Emperor, for something I said about the Hero. That was decades ago.”

“Pardon, Your Majesty? What do you mean?”

“It’s a trivial story, just listen. …Shortly after that era’s Hero reported defeating the Demon Lord, some lords attempted to use the Hero as a rallying point to secure their own interests. It seems colorless now, but it was a hot political topic back then.”

“…Your Majesty.”

“The court ministers and the chamberlain wanted to pressure those nobles. My brother wanted to do the same. But I suggested to my father that we simply leave that group alone. Not because I firmly believed in the Hero, but because I roughly guessed how things would unfold.”

“……”

“How do you think the Hero felt, being harassed by nobles immediately after returning from a long, harsh expedition? He must have become disgusted with the Empire. Indeed, not long after, the Hero returned to his original world through the Papal State’s sanctuary.”

It might not have been solely because of the nobles’ harassment that he left, but the Emperor still remembered the previous generation Hero’s irritated expression.

“Um, Your Majesty. Then those nobles…?”

“They were left frustrated after all their wasted efforts. My father was greatly pleased. That was also when I clearly pulled ahead in the succession race. Looking back, I think I was rather clever in those days.”

“……”

The court magician fidgeted uncomfortably upon hearing this, as if he had heard something he shouldn’t have.

‘I’ve been tormenting this poor friend for no reason. It’s not even something to be tense about.’

The brother with whom he had once fiercely competed was now living comfortably while governing a single city in the imperial domain, and half of the noble families who had plotted (now seeming cute in retrospect) to use the Hero were struggling since the Cordana incident.

The Emperor, well aware of this, had only one reason for bringing it up.

He was struck by how remarkably his feelings toward the Hero had changed.

When he was a prince, the Hero had been a burdensome existence—someone who could neither be fully honored nor oppressed.

But now…

‘Rather, the Empire has become the Hero’s headache.’

On the surface, Hero Erick Wellesley was set to walk a path of prosperity.

If he wished, he could be elevated in rank and expand his territory. His wealth would grow to a level incomparable to anyone except the Emperor.

Perhaps a power holder unlike any the Empire had ever seen would emerge.

Yet the Emperor doubted that the Hero himself would find this prospect pleasant.

A commoner-born knight who had rapidly risen through the ranks to wield power that even the Emperor might envy, and who faced no risk of imperial rejection because of it, yet still couldn’t feel satisfaction.

Power had never felt so meaningless. Even the efforts of his youth spent striving for the throne suddenly seemed futile.

He couldn’t dismiss this as merely a feeling that came with age. Even the Crown Prince, in his prime, occasionally wore an expression of detachment.

However, the Emperor had no luxury to indulge in this sense of powerlessness.

“…Your Majesty. It seems that Viscount Weiden has convinced his servants, guards, and even farmers working his direct lands to collectively purchase lottery tickets. Apparently, he believes that buying multiple tickets will guarantee a win…”

Because unlike the dispirited Emperor, the Empire was full of overly enthusiastic people.

***

The Empire’s situation was, as expected, quite disastrous.

Though I had only heard a rough overview from the Emperor, I could guess the circumstances by intuition.

It wasn’t strange. After all, I had created the lottery precisely to keep the Empire’s people within a predictable range.

“…Hero. Is the situation very bad?” asked Priest Edin with concern.

The backpack he carried was bulging. It was due to the treasures he had taken from the Demon Lord’s castle treasury. Mostly gems like amber and opal that were popular among middle-aged and older nobles. He seemed to have some plan.

Looking at him now, he appeared to be nothing but a corrupt priest, but that wasn’t the reality. The looting of the Demon Lord’s castle was done collectively by the entire hero party. Besides, the current priest would undoubtedly use those gems for training his juniors.

“No, Father Edin. It’s as expected. Of course, since I was speaking with His Majesty, I didn’t get a detailed explanation, but it’s not the worst-case scenario.”

“What happened…?”

“The lottery fund has already surpassed 30 billion. They’ve decided to use some of that money to build reservoirs in two underdeveloped territories. There are regions where people starve to death when there’s less rainfall due to lack of stable water sources.”

“Was that your instruction?”

“Yes. I gave those instructions before setting out. …But it seems some lords have become enraged because of it. I can understand why they’d be upset if the Hero sends magicians and technicians to neighboring territories to build reservoirs for free.”

“Will you really build them for free?”

“No. I never give anything for free. I’ve adopted a structure where I’ll be repaid over a long period if the territory’s produce improves even slightly thanks to the reservoir. Lords blinded by jealousy will ignore that fact, though.”

“And that’s not the worst situation… Ah, come to think of it, you’re right.”

The priest nodded casually.

Though the lottery fund wasn’t my personal money, I had no intention of giving handouts. I only planned to use it effectively to raise the Empire’s productivity, which had been declining since the Cordana incident. The reservoir was just one such project.

Yet conflicts were arising before we’d even broken ground—truly typical of the Empire.

That wasn’t all.

The Academy, which had descended into chaos after getting a vague taste of winning.

The Arknight ducal family, suggesting that the lottery fund should be jointly operated by the imperial family and nobles to reduce the Hero’s burden.

Even in the southern border, there were fools claiming they would retrieve my long-dead brother’s remains from military service and give him a proper grave. I doubted they were doing this out of simple reverence for me; they must have other motives.

There were undoubtedly numerous other minor incidents occurring.

Accidents that neither I nor the imperial household had yet grasped, but which were steadily destroying many people’s lives.

Of course, it seemed no incident had occurred that was too difficult for me to handle.

In fact, it would be hard for an incident beyond my capabilities to occur. Even in the extreme case of someone starting a rebellion, I could suppress it, and if tens of thousands gathered demanding money, I could ignore them.

‘The problem isn’t the incidents themselves.’

The core issue was that such incidents kept occurring.

They were even becoming increasingly cunning, perhaps to avoid retaliation.

Just look at the Arknight ducal family eyeing the lottery fund, shamelessly claiming they wanted to “reduce the Hero’s burden.” They even seemed to be trying to draw in collateral imperial family members.

With so many imperial family members, some were bound to be tempted. If the Emperor’s uncle or cousins were enticed, it would give me a headache.

‘These bastards. It’s good they’re using their brains, but why only in this direction?’

At this rate, the nation’s downfall was all but guaranteed.

As incidents that couldn’t be resolved with appropriate violence and cunning increased, I would be the only one with a headache. No matter what methods I used, I couldn’t reverse people’s corrupted minds. Eventually, even I wouldn’t be able to handle it.

At this rate, not only rebuilding but even maintaining the status quo would be difficult.

Perhaps it was time to abandon patchwork solutions. Maybe a more fundamental measure was needed.

This thought naturally came to mind.

And it quickly led to contemplating alternatives.