Ch.368EP.77 – After He Left (3)

…respected him.

“Ed, our youngest. What brings you here?”

“Brother!”

“You fool, you should call him ‘Your Majesty,’ not ‘brother.'”

“Brother, Your Majesty?”

“Hahaha! This one makes me laugh.”

No, I still respect him even now.

A ruler greater than any other.

A wise and brilliant king who puts the kingdom before himself.

A genius who never shies away from innovation and always shows progressive insight.

Edmund truly respected the man who, despite being human, came to be called a god-king.

Since childhood, he had witnessed his achievements up close, more than anyone else…

Therefore.

“Could I not become the same?”

As his brother, having observed him closer than anyone else.

Could he not become like his brother, like a god-king?

…It was not strange that such thoughts would eventually sprout in Edmund’s heart.

Because he respected and admired him more than anyone.

It is natural to want to resemble what one admires.

So…

‘I wasn’t wrong. I am… the brother of the god-king!’

There’s no way what he was doing could be wrong—.

-THWACK!

“AAAAARGH!”

“You seem lost in thought. Were you indulging in some pointless fantasy? Or did you mistake this situation for a dream?”

“AAAAARGH…!”

“Then I’d like to wake you up. This situation is real, you detestable beast.”

WHOOSH!

“!!!”

Edmund couldn’t even scream.

Pain?

No, this was beyond what could be defined by such a simple word.

It was something more terrible, more frightening and chilling.

“I’m grateful to that knight. Yes, how could mere killing be enough forgiveness? You must live more terribly, more painfully before you go.”

THWACK!

The blade piercing between Edmund’s brows, along with flames, was extracting something from Edmund.

And that was none other than-.

SIZZLE!

…Edmund’s soul.

* * *

‘…I never realized I was such a fool.’

Blake wore a self-deprecating sneer.

A bitter smile at his own stupidity.

He had thought himself to be quite intelligent and wise, but now he realized he was far from smart—just incredibly foolish.

‘How did I not see this?’

He had harbored suspicions about the royal family.

Twenty years ago, he believed that those who killed his wife were certainly no ordinary force.

A power that targeted the lady of Galahad, breaking through her iron-clad protection to kill her.

The royal family was definitely among the forces he should have suspected.

However, at that time, his father, the god-king, was still alive, so his suspicions about the royal family were somewhat diminished.

He believed no one could have acted outside of his control.

…But he was wrong.

At the recent banquet, when he heard that Edmund was actually the one who had revived the Blood Crusaders thirty years ago, he was struck with shock as if hit by a hammer.

He had deceived and betrayed the god-king’s trust.

Blood ties didn’t guarantee trustworthiness.

So after the banquet fell apart, Blake continued investigating.

He investigated all of Edmund’s subordinates, tracked their movements, and didn’t hesitate to capture suspicious individuals to extract information.

In just 10 days.

In only 10 days, he discovered.

That Edmund was involved in the death of his woman…!

While the Blood Crusaders were likely the direct killers, Edmund was certainly indirectly involved.

“You really hid it well. Killing your loyal servants by disguising their deaths as illness or accidents, and even murdering their families to prevent information leaks… such cruelty. But unfortunately for you, this kingdom has a family that can see souls.”

[…Modred!]

“Thanks to helping them the day before, gaining their cooperation was easy.”

[Damn these mysteries!!]

The vengeful spirits of those unjustly killed.

Blake was prepared to bow his head to Modred to meet them, but they willingly offered their help.

– Modred never forgets grudges, but also never forgets favors.

It was fortunate.

That he had helped them.

Because of that.

“I was able to discover the truth.”

[Ugh!]

“The spirits told me to give you the most horrible, the filthiest death. I intend to keep that promise.”

The servants and their families who died at Edmund’s hands to conceal information wanted only one thing:

Revenge!

And that was…

“What I want as well.”

[Blake!!]

“Silence.”

WHOOSH!

[AAAAGH!]

Edmund tried to lunge forward with an enraged voice, but it was an impossible dream.

Because…

Humm-.

“Your soul is now ‘subjugated’ to this demon sword from this moment. Do you think someone like you can possibly resist?”

From this moment, he was nothing but a [slave].

The mystery of subjugation.

One of the five mysteries possessed by Galahad’s demon sword, Lancelot, and one of the most difficult mysteries to handle.

It’s nearly impossible to subjugate high-ranking opponents, and its operation resembles sorcery, making it a mystery rarely used.

If Edmund had achieved a rank higher than most, he might have been able to resist this mystery, but it was impossible for him.

His rank was at best…

“Lower than that of an ordinary soldier. Well, you never had the opportunity to build rank. You never became stronger or risked your life with effort, never accumulated knowledge or good deeds. How could someone like you, who lived only through ‘shortcuts’ without any effort, have any rank?”

[You bastard! What do you know! How much I’ve struggled! How hard I worked to catch up to him! To my brother! What would you know of my suffering when you’ve lived a blessed life chosen by the mysteries…!]

“How amusing. The notion that you consider shortcuts to be effort.”

Was his hatred for mysteries born from jealousy at not being chosen?

It’s laughable, no, detestable.

If he knew how painful the years had been after being chosen by the demon sword, he probably wouldn’t speak like that.

But he doesn’t even try to understand, just burns with jealousy, and that’s infinitely disgusting.

CRACK!

“Well, enough. Further conversation is pointless.”

But Blake didn’t express such disgust in words.

Nothing is more meaningless than conversing with a patient spewing paranoid delusions.

Blake pressed on both Edmund’s soul and body simultaneously as he quietly announced:

“I’m not the least bit curious about your circumstances. What you were thinking when you betrayed the kingdom, why you hate me. Because they’re all reasons typical of someone like you. A foolish, incompetent ruler who has tarnished the Pendragon name.”

[!!]

“I intend only to give you ‘pain.’ Continuously, in life and in death.”

[W-wait!]

If someone else had said such things, it might have been dismissed as a joke.

But he is the master of the demon sword.

And the demon sword…

HUMMMM-!

Willingly employed cruel methods to fulfill its master’s command.

WHOOSH!!

The mysteries within the demon sword responded to their master’s anger and descended upon Edmund, who tried to resist but.

CRACK!

[URRRGH!!]

Resistance was impossible for him.

[N-no! I-I am…!]

Edmund pleaded as his consciousness gradually faded and flickered.

For all of this to be a dream, for someone to come rescue him quickly.

But…

CRUNCH! CRUNCH!

CHOMP…!

[AAAAARGH!]

The pain wouldn’t let him go.

It only ensnared him more thoroughly, delivering greater agony.

[B-brother….]

Edmund reached out his hand.

Remembering the one who had always lifted him up with a warm touch.

But sadly.

Whoosh-.

…There was no one anywhere to take his hand.

CRACKLE!

Thus, the one once called king was ‘dismantled.’

…Like a piece of meat.

* * *

WHOOSH!

The castle was burning.

The silver castle, with its brilliant history, was on fire.

“S-summon a mage!”

“Call Irene Windler! We need her magic!”

“D-damn it…!”

The fire wouldn’t easily extinguish.

It wouldn’t go out even when doused with water, only growing fiercer in real-time as it consumed the castle.

“AAAGH!”

“N-no!”

Moreover, the flames seemed like hunting dogs.

As if selecting specific people to burn, they targeted a few individuals who had faithfully carried out King Edmund’s orders.

This was certainly no coincidence, and those who recognized the nature of these flames narrowed their eyes and stuck out their tongues.

“So this is the flame of the demon sword. Truly frightening.”

“Hahaha! Brother, your expression doesn’t look frightened at all!”

“It’s not a lie. It is indeed a dangerous flame.”

“I want to try touching it!”

“Calm down. I don’t want to lose a reliable brother yet.”

Men with black hair.

The lord of the North and his champion were observing the burning castle.

As if watching a festival.

“Well, it seems we’re not the only ones watching.”

“How about it, shall we propose watching together?”

“Very well.”

Besides Magnus, the Grand Duke, and Maximus, several others were observing the burning castle, and they all sensed each other’s powerful presence.

“Over there is Tristan, and there is Ophen and Modred. And over there… Oh, Bedivere and Percival? It’s been a while.”

“Not just them. Almost all the great nobles have gathered.”

The historic families who established the era of Pendragon alongside the Knight King had all gathered.

Those currently known as great nobles or great families.

In addition, emerging great families led by Ophen, along with Howard, Cavendish, and Gulliver, were also gathering.

The title of great noble, which only 21 families in the kingdom could use.

Those who possessed it had gathered, and seeing this, Magnus clicked his tongue.

“No one intends to save the king.”

“Who would save such a thing? He sold out the country and finally ruined what the god-king built. It’s remarkable! Not even 20 years since the god-king’s passing, and he’s ruined the country to this extent! This will surely go down in history as an evil deed, hahaha!”

“I agree.”

In a way, there’s only one reason these families have gathered.

Because today is the day their [shackles] are finally released.

The Pendragon family, blessed by the Silver Dragon and inheriting the bloodline of the great Knight King, is finally crumbling.

And that moment also marks the disappearance of the oath with the Knight King that had bound the great noble families.

Even if Edmund doesn’t die, Pendragon was the first to betray the oath that bound them, the ‘honor of chivalry,’ through their impiety and evil deeds, so they no longer need to be suppressed by the Pendragon name.

And it also stimulates the ambitions of those who, with their immense power, had been content to rule as mere provincial lords.

“-This is the beginning of war.”

Those with power and will shall rise.

-The era of warring states!

Now, who will claim this continent blessed by mysteries and fairies?

Indeed.

“Hahaha! How about we also make a declaration for the North? The Lionel Royal Family! Doesn’t that sound magnificent?”

“……”

“…Brother?”

Magnus, who would normally have scolded him by now, remained silent.

Instead.

“Not a bad idea.”

“…Oh?”

He was smiling.

“Royal family, huh.”

─That has quite a nice ring to it.

WHOOSH-!

In the fireworks display named fire demon, the heroes freed from their shackles gleamed with fierce eyes.