Ch.69Flowing River (2)

The legion raised their spears.

Their sharpness, aimed at the heavens, had overcome the era of decline.

“Long live His Majesty the Demon King!”

“May you be victorious forever!”

They were warriors who had brought perfect victory against the celestial realm. Though all praise went to the Demon King, they carried their own pride.

With the blood we shed today, the King has established her majesty; someday when she grows stronger, she will take us to the celestial realm.

Faith had taken root in their hearts.

The legion that Durin had carefully nurtured had finally grown into a pillar of support. The foundation for looking toward the future had been laid.

“Lord Regent.”

“Your Majesty.”

The two met again in the Demon King’s castle.

The beacon of hope and the one who gazed toward the future.

They looked into each other’s eyes.

“You’ve worked hard.”

“Thank you. I will prepare for what’s next, so please take some time to rest.”

“I’m fine. Let’s go straight to the throne room and prepare for the meeting.”

Few words were exchanged.

They paid their respects to each other and returned to their respective positions.

There were too many problems in the demon realm to express their joy.

These emotions were set aside for the future.

Duty came first.

#

“Shall we first discuss how to deal with the apostates?”

After the great trial of the celestial war had passed, the leadership of the Demon King’s castle gathered in one place.

It was almost the first time all members had attended, and while casual conversation might have been expected, they continued their vigilant watch over the demon realm without rest.

“I’ve placed all the angels who surrendered under my control through the magic of domination. My abilities are still insufficient to achieve perfect worship as with lower demons, but they should be adequate to serve as soldiers.”

The demon who opened the discussion was Demon King Serphin.

She confidently surveyed the assembly. As king, she announced her recent achievements to everyone.

The timing was appropriate, as the apostate Ursael was also present beside Durin.

“There are commanders who have pledged allegiance to the Demon King’s castle, and their numbers are sufficient to form a unit. Isn’t that right, Lord Regent?”

“I was planning to establish a special purpose legion anyway.”

“I’ll help accelerate that process. Consider it a reward from me as Demon King.”

Serphin lowered her voice to maintain a regal dignity. Though still young, she seemed to have practiced, and it showed. Some older demons had to bite their lips to suppress their laughter, but the overall impression was decent.

“Ahem. Grand Inquisitor.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Please read a passage from the scripture.”

After clearing her throat, the Demon King called upon Matheus. He carefully rose from his seat.

As all eyes turned to him, he slowly opened the scripture.

“The First Demon King declared that those who wish to stand against the celestial realm should gladly take up the sword. The apostates are born solely for vengeance, and shall destroy the enemy with hatred in place of holiness. If they willingly gather to form an army of ten thousand, we may reclaim the heaven we have lost.”

The passage he recited solemnly was about the Fall.

Serphin turned her gaze to Ursael.

“If we make that one a commander and turn the twenty thousand troops I’ve brought into Dark Knights, the Demon King’s castle can take a great step toward the celestial realm.”

“…”

“You haven’t yet accepted my demonic power. Will you receive it here and now?”

The Demon King asked the apostate. It was close to coercion.

Ursael had no choice. She was about to willingly kneel and approach the Demon King.

“Your Majesty.”

Had it not been for Durin, the ceremony would have proceeded immediately.

“Now is not the time.”

He moved Ursael back and stepped forward before the Demon King himself.

For the first time, a conflict arose in the throne room with its red carpet.

The Demon King, seated on the throne, tilted her head in question.

“Why do you say that? I prepared all this for you.”

“I am grateful. Words cannot express my feelings.”

Durin bowed deeply, showing extreme respect.

However, his following words bordered on irreverence.

“Regrettably, Your Majesty’s efforts pursue an unattainable illusion.”

“An illusion? Why use such an expression?”

“Because Dark Knights cannot be controlled merely through enchantment or domination.”

“Then what exactly should govern them? Answer me directly.”

Durin raised his head to face the Demon King.

Serphin wasn’t angry. She held genuine curiosity.

The Regent willingly provided an answer to the young Demon King.

“Your Majesty, the greatest strength of Holy Knights comes from their faith.”

“I learned this from the Grand Inquisitor. They believe they are realizing God’s will with their own hands.”

“If demons have fearless fighting spirit, angels have unwavering devotion. They perceive holy power as God’s love, and consider their response as coming from their own souls.”

“Is that why we cannot yet use apostates as a legion?”

“Your Majesty, demons have no god.”

Demons who were cast out from the celestial realm and settled in the demon world.

Durin pointed out this fact.

“We cannot fill the faith that serves as the angels’ greatest strength.”

“Couldn’t we make them feel my demonic power in the same way they felt holy power as God’s love?”

“I regret to inform you that not only are you still lacking, Your Majesty, but the fundamental direction is different. Holy power is an authority granted by the Creator God to the God of Light. It is a powerful force that makes creatures revere him and follow his will.”

“Then demonic power is…”

“A power based on fear. The power that immobilizes creatures through their intense fear of death. That is domination.”

Serphin understood and nodded.

“So angels, who draw their strength from that love they worship, cannot be moved by a power that oppresses them.”

“To use apostates effectively as an army, we ultimately need one thing. We must reclaim our god.”

“A god? Can such a being exist for demons? This sounds impossible to me.”

She was extremely negative. Having brought this as a gift for Durin with joy, Serphin was disappointed to hear it couldn’t be properly utilized.

“We can’t dispose of them either, which is troublesome.”

“It means they cannot yet be used as Holy Knights, but we can still utilize their robust bodies to form a good fighting force.”

Having started strongly, he now took a gentler approach.

After first tempering Serphin’s high expectations, Durin presented his realistic plan.

“No matter how much they lack holy power, they were born as angels. They were created to fight demons like us and rule over humans, so if we equip them properly, they will become powerful medium infantry.”

“Though they still harbor fear…”

“An army united by desperation for survival and hope of saving their families.”

The Regent raised his head to face the Demon King.

“Your Majesty, apostasy means not only conversion but also believing in nothing.”

“Instead, you intend to teach them the fighting spirit that has taken root in demons?”

“That is correct. They will be reborn as the Army of Apostates.”

Though it was regrettable they couldn’t be used as Holy Knights, they would serve as another wing in a unit centered around medium infantry.

“Entrust them to me. I will transform them into a legion.”

“Durin.”

Serphin called his name familiarly.

A small smile appeared on her face beneath her green horns.

“I’ll trust you. As always.”

“I am deeply honored, Your Majesty.”

Durin bowed deeply.

#

“It’s a shame the apostate army ended up as infantry after all.”

After the meeting, Durin and Ludmila walked together down the corridor.

The two demons were still discussing the apostate army.

“Is there no demonic power that could replace holy power?”

“It’s impossible even with the Demon King’s power. History tells us so.”

“True, even during Demon King Caldra’s time, they couldn’t properly utilize them and ended up in mutual destruction with the opposing angels.”

The Grand Sorceress clicked her tongue in disappointment.

As the Grand Inquisitor had recited from scripture, apostates were beings armed solely with hatred and vengeance. They had merely replaced holy power with fighting spirit. Based on this, they were used to draw out superhuman physical abilities to target angel commanders who wielded holy power.

If not for that limitation, the Demon King’s castle would have been leading an angel army long ago.

“Then there’s no choice. Since there’s no alternative, you’ll have to build the legion as you envision.”

“I can only hope for another solution. Ludmila, I wish you could find one if possible.”

“Well, I’m not sure either.”

Ludmila shrugged. She answered while looking at Ursael who stood beside the Regent.

“I should consult the stars at the observatory. It’s about time I looked at the night sky regarding the hero’s situation anyway.”

“That issue too. Let’s look into it after settling the apostates in the Demon King’s castle and organizing them into an army.”

“There haven’t been reports of him waking up soon, though he’s still unstable.”

“Then I’ll leave the rest to you, Ludmila.”

“Sure. Work hard.”

The Grand Sorceress waved her hand lightly in farewell.

The Regent, as usual, didn’t return the gesture and turned away. The sound of his heavy footsteps faded as Durin walked away. Ludmila could only feel dejected as she watched the apostate bow slightly before disappearing.

“Still the same.”

She grumbled.

“Would it hurt to show me the same respect you show the Demon King? You’re just too cold to everyone else.”

As she was complaining about Durin, the exemplar of an emotionless commander, smacking her lips in frustration, she caught sight of a messenger running toward her from afar.

At first, she was inclined to ignore it, thinking it might be urgent news, but she had to stop.

“Lady Ludmila!”

The messenger was calling for her specifically. Ludmila frowned and glared at the breathless messenger who approached urgently.

“What is it? Why are you running so breathlessly?”

“You, you need to come to the observatory urgently.”

“Huh? Why are you delivering this message? Where are the other sorcerers?”

“Well, that’s…”

The messenger looked around cautiously before whispering to Ludmila.

“!”

At that moment.

“M-Master has come to the castle?”

“Yes, yes.”

“Why is everything so quiet when such an important figure has arrived?”

“I don’t know the circumstances either…”

“Sigh. It’s my fault for asking you.”

Ludmila stopped thinking. She needed to get to the observatory quickly.

All thoughts she had while talking with Durin were put on hold.

“Ugh. Why did they come at a time like this?”

Her footsteps were hurried as she made her way to the observatory with much fuss.