Ch.219Chapter 219. The Invaded Empire

“Let’s go, to the Empire.”

The resolute voice echoed throughout the room.

The prophet sitting before the crystal ball, from which the voice leaked, began to tremble at her fingertips as she controlled her power.

“…So, you’re coming after all.”

It was something she had not only expected but was certain of.

She knew well that the man who had embraced her so tenderly could never make the decision to abandon her.

But at the moment, there were no means to reverse his choice.

Given how things had turned out, the only way to fully carry out her mission would be to meet him directly, persuade him, and send him back.

“Mother of the Beginning.”

Everything was for the sake of protecting love and duty, those two things.

Irie, recalling the resolution she had long harbored in her heart, gazed at the future unfolding in the crystal ball and spoke with a bitter voice.

“…Is this the best outcome I can achieve?”

Realizing that being with him was the surest means to fulfill her mission.

And accepting that giving him up would allow more people to be saved in the era about to unfold.

“Is your stomach alright?”

Amidst her contemplation of such a future, trying to soothe her complicated feelings, a familiar voice reached her.

Irie lifted her gaze from the crystal ball and quietly faced the person who had entered her room.

Orion Seis.

The leader who, with the disappearance of the suppressant, had come to seek mutual destruction with the calamities raging in this world, alongside the rapidly fracturing Empire.

“Yes. It’s fine.”

Irie was here because she had joined his cause.

By human standards, he might rightfully be called evil, but what she wanted was beyond humanity, for the entire world…

To preserve as many traces as possible in this harsh world.

“…I’ll ask one last time.”

And in the era to come after this end, if there were people still living, they would surely remember them as villains.

The Crown Prince Seis, foreseeing such a future, posed a question to the descendant of the God of Destruction who was cooperating with him.

“Are you confident you won’t regret this decision?”

“Yes.”

Irie rose to her feet with an immediate answer.

Then she placed her hand on her empty stomach and prepared to follow him.

“I’ve already made my resolve.”

She had done everything she could, and all that remained was to wait until the time came.

As she expressed her firm determination, someone began to make their presence known beside the Crown Prince Seis, who was about to guide her.

Emerging gradually from the mist, taking shape, was a vampire dressed in maid’s attire.

“…Scheherazade.”

“Yes~ I am Scheherazade, the faithful servant of my lord~”

The ascetic Scheherazade.

With her characteristically sly smile, she lifted the hem of her skirt and greeted them with dignity.

Though her actions were unsuited for the situation about to unfold, her voice that followed was utterly serious.

“The Demon Lord’s army is showing signs of invading the archipelago… I came to ask if we should release ‘them’ as planned.”

“Proceed as planned. Make sure the Demon Lord’s army doesn’t invade before the ritual begins.”

“What about the citizens remaining in the archipelago?”

“…They’ve been given ample time.”

For half a year, they had issued an extermination order, eliminating as many dangers as possible near the Empire, and through forceful suppression, created a natural pretext for them to leave the archipelago.

Despite this, those who remained would have to submit to the fate that was about to befall them, whatever their reasons.

Whether they were ignorant, lacked the courage to risk danger, or harbored ambitions to rule over the crumbling Empire.

“…How cruel. Our lord is.”

After giggling at her lord’s ruthless decision, she was about to withdraw when…

“Ah, right. Come to think of it, there’s something I forgot…”

As if something had just occurred to her, Scheherazade faced the Crown Prince Seis and asked a question.

“What should we do about that witch?”

“…You mean Vivian.”

“I took a peek at her on my way here, and she was just staring blankly into space. She follows orders when under enchantment, but left alone, she’s in a state where she can’t make any judgments on her own.”

The Curse of Oblivion.

A dark art of vampires that gradually erases the memories of its target over time.

Even beings capable of bringing calamity to this world were not exempt from becoming empty dolls, losing their will due to this curse.

“Do as you please.”

But it had been long since he had obtained everything he needed from her.

When he said he no longer needed to concern himself with her, Scheherazade gave a bitter smile and began transforming her body into mist.

“Am I really free to do as I please?”

“Yes, as long as you don’t interfere with the upcoming ritual.”

“Hehe, understood. As it happens, we’re short-handed, so I’ll have to work her hard until the time comes~”

With a soft “swoosh,” Scheherazade disappeared without a trace.

Seis, clearing away the remnants left in the empty space, looked at the darkness hanging in the palace corridor and quietly said,

“Follow me.”

“…Yes.”

Shaking off her final hesitation, Irie followed behind him.

As she did so, looking out the corridor window, she began to steady her breath.

The once majestic and peaceful city was now burning in real-time, spreading black smoke in all directions.

Though it was a scene of tragedy even from a distance, Irie’s gaze was directed not at the archipelago but at the sky above it.

The smoke from burning buildings. The even darker storm clouds.

And the red currents gradually illuminating the spaces between them.

‘Soon…’

The faint starlight shining here and there in the ominously changing sky made the prophet facing it intuitively realize one thing.

‘Soon… everything will be concluded.’

That beings existing beyond that sky, each with their own reasons,

Were watching the events unfolding in this small world.

****

And, as the sky turned red, they reached the Empire’s border.

“Everyone, evacuate this way!”

Just as they crossed the ruined gate, they were greeted by a massive number of monsters pursuing the refugees.

-Kyaoa! Aoaaaa!

“Damn it! We spent half a year on extermination campaigns, so why are there still so many monsters swarming here? What were the others doing while we were exterminating?!”

“What good is extermination! They used all the troops to suppress riots, so they couldn’t stop the influx from outside!”

As the soldiers in confrontation said, the monsters appearing now were due to the Empire’s maintenance reaching its limit.

As a result, the swarming monsters were destroying even the refugee shelters in each territory and massacring the refugees.

“More refugees are coming from the west! Monsters are pursuing them too!!”

“Activate the defense system now!”

Boom, boom! The ark’s cannons spewed fire, sweeping away the approaching monsters.

However, due to the nature of artillery, precision strikes were difficult, and some monsters evaded the bombardment and continued their pursuit.

Soldiers who entered to stop them protected the refugees and guarded the path to the ark, but the problem was that there were monsters too difficult for ordinary soldiers to handle.

-Kwaaaa!!!

A giant snake-like monster erupted from the ground, tearing it apart.

As the soldiers panicked and scattered, two people advanced ahead of everyone else, preparing to direct their power at the monster.

“Mister, are you ready?”

“Yeah, kiddo!”

Garam Lee and Jaseong.

Solid pillars supporting me in protecting the ark.

-Kwaaang!!

The soil that rose due to their power shot like a cannonball, and the massive beast, turned to mush by the enormous mass, staggered in place and even closed its mouth that had been aimed at the refugees.

Nevertheless, it was my role to finish off the creature that showed signs of struggling without its breath being cut off.

“Annabelle!!!”

-You don’t need to call, I’ll do it anyway!

A massive wave of power arose from the raised spear.

The precise control of power exerted using the ability to handle spirits collided with the power she wielded, causing a chain of impacts.

And that power, combined with the technique of controlling flow, allowed for a destructive strike to be delivered without relying on the enemy’s power.

-Fwooong!

As the monster hit by the thrown spear shattered into pieces, I aimed my spear at the newly approaching monsters to block their access to the refugees.

“Everyone, evacuate to the ark! We’ll protect this place!”

“Th-thank you, Hero! You saved us!”

The refugees gradually accumulated in the ark.

The reason their number exceeded those secured during the initial riots was because the shelters within the Empire were collapsing one by one.

And that pace would only accelerate.

This was something I could sense just from hearing the information provided by the refugees…

“Our, our territory… Our territory was invaded by the Demon Lord’s army!”

“Are you saying the Demon Lord’s army crossed the border?”

“Y-yes. We somehow managed with the monsters, but… then the Demon Lord’s army launched a massive invasion on the shelter in our territory, and the defense line was completely devastated.”

“We were barely able to escape because we were in the outskirts, but…”

The refugees shuddered as they recalled the events.

The soldiers who heard their information exchanged glances, all with pale faces as they looked at each other.

“Even if we go, there won’t be anyone alive, right?”

Monsters merely attack people, but the Demon Lord’s army is different.

They are a race that seeks plunder from birth. It would be foolish to think there would be even a small hope in a place where beings who ruthlessly violate others’ dignity and life have passed through.

“Well, there’s still a possibility that there are survivors.”

But currently, the ark had someone who was most knowledgeable about the demon tribe.

Merilyn, who had been listening to the invasion news beside me, gave me a subtle glance and quietly shared her opinion.

“Demons intoxicated with power are usually like that. Rather than immediately killing the weak they can trample, they prefer to play with them as much as possible to prove their superiority.”

“Are you saying they keep them alive until they lose interest?”

“The children who are indebted to this ark survived for that reason.”

Despite being of the demon tribe, is she disgusted by such acts because she’s been on the receiving end?

Anyway, there was at least a small possibility that people in the attacked shelter were still alive.

After considering this, I gave instructions to Sanson, who had been listening to the news beside me.

“Tell everyone on the ark. We’re heading towards the nearby territory to rescue the refugees.”

“Are you sure that’s alright? If we divert towards the territory, it will delay our journey to the archipelago…”

“If the Demon Lord’s army has already crossed the border, there will soon be a clash in the archipelago as well. And to bring the ark’s functions to 100%, we need to secure as many people as possible who can handle the equipment.”

It’s not just about saving people.

To prepare for what’s to come, we need to increase our allies as much as possible to be ready for the situation after entering the archipelago.

Although we’re pressed for time, if we consider a detour, the decision must be swift.

“Destination: the nearby Teles territory! Turn the ark around!”

“Switch to mobilization mode and inject fuel to increase engine output!”

“Handle approaching monsters through the defense function! Send refugees who can act to the defense room and helm to increase our response capacity!”

-Kwagagaga!

The wheels cutting through the unpaved earth advance, causing the fortress to vibrate intensely.

Feeling that vibration with my body and sensing the advance to the extremities, Annabelle, who had separated from me, admonished:

-If you try to protect everything, you might lose it all.

I know that.

In a situation where there’s a top priority, there’s no room to turn attention elsewhere.

But how can one live thinking only coldly and rationally about the world?

“Trying to live in such a world is already a stretch.”

Irie too would hope that I wouldn’t ignore the people on the way to meet her.

Believing that my decision was right, as we headed towards our destination, Sanson rushed to me in the control room.

“Hero! The bird tribe who went on reconnaissance have returned! They say the territory is filled with corpses!”

Damn it, could it be that in that short time, the demons killed everyone and left?

Hurrying to the top of the ark to hear detailed news, the bird tribe who had descended from the watchtower conveyed their message to me.

“They are not human corpses.”

Within the worst-case scenario I had imagined, this was somewhat hopeful news.

“Not human…?”

“They are corpses of beings with various appearances. Many of our kind were also killed by those creatures.”

Puzzled by her words, I quickly took out a telescope and took time to observe the situation in the territory with my own eyes.

As she said, scattered throughout the collapsed city were the corpses of non-humans…

For some reason, demons had died en masse within the territory and were now greeting us who had come here.

“What on earth happened? How could the demons who invaded the territory be massacred like this…”

“There are survivors over there!”

Whatever the case, we needed to confirm what had happened.

With this in mind, I rushed out of the ark and approached the survivors secured by the leading soldiers to gather information from them.

“Are, are you here to save us?”

“Are there more survivors besides you all?”

“Yes, yes… Ah, there are survivors gathered inside.”

“We’ll rescue them right away.”

Sanson and the soldiers set out to secure the survivors upon hearing the good news.

Trusting them with the task, I soothed the remaining survivor and quietly asked a question.

“Calmly… Can you tell me what happened here?”

What on earth had happened for the demons who invaded this territory to die off, and for more survivors than expected to remain alive?

“Orcs…”

The answer that came back was something I had never even considered.

“An orc belonging to the Demon Lord’s army suddenly started killing the demons of the Demon Lord’s army.”

The Four Heavenly Kings, Hellcry.

How had he, who had saved my life in the past, come to betray even the Demon Lord’s army?