“What’s the state of the royal palace?”

Once the situation had settled, Clay dismissed everyone else, leaving only Neville to speak with him in private.

“The area where you were collapsed badly, but no one was killed.”

“No one was killed?”

“You told me to move the people in that section elsewhere. Just in case, I placed them as far away as possible. Thanks to that, very few were caught in the collapse.”

Hearing Neville’s answer, Clay felt a small measure of relief.

That could have gotten troublesome, but it’s a relief.

If there had been deaths from the palace collapse right after the Demon King’s Army’s arrival, public sentiment would inevitably have turned sour. Having avoided the worst, Clay couldn’t help but feel a weight lift from his chest.

“Neville, you were a big help.”

“Not at all.” Neville shook his head at Clay’s words, “I was only doing my job. You assigned this to me because you knew I’d handle it well, didn’t you?”

“Well, that’s not exactly wrong.”

“Then it’s thanks to you, Clay.”

It was almost a joke, but Clay didn’t bother to deny it. After all, he had placed Neville here because he trusted his abilities—and now was not the time to start tallying credit.

“Neville, more importantly—what’s Krata’s response?”

“They hadn’t shown any reaction until the recent explosions. Now, soldiers seem to be gathering.”

“Preparing for battle?”

“It looks like it, but it’s rather sloppy. I saw very few knights leading the troops.”

Clay tilted his head at that.

What are they doing?

The Demon King’s Army was practically at their doorstep. Even if they hadn’t noticed earlier, they surely knew by now. Yet their hasty preparations amounted to such a meager defense?

No way…

A thought crossed his mind, but it only made him scoff.

If that’s true, then Lutan is an even bigger coward than I imagined.

From what he knew, Lutan was far too arrogant to act like a coward.

I don’t get it.

Even his direct subordinates in the Darkmoon Knights had sent no information. They would have infiltrated as far as possible, so if nothing had come through, it meant that whatever was hidden—be it an ambush or something else—lay much deeper inside.

Wrapping yourself up that tightly will only lead to defeat.

Encircling an enemy made it possible to starve them out. If Krata still insisted on doing so, it meant they were holding on to some hidden card.

“Bring Athanasia here.”

“Yes.”

Neville left and returned with Athanasia.

“Athanasia.”

“Uh—uh, what?”

She looked at him with a nervous expression, prompting a questioning look from Clay.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Ah, um, I just… I don’t think I explained enough to you before.”

While the situation was being sorted out earlier, Athanasia had been berated—nearly insulted—by both Beatrice and Naiad for not fully explaining her actions to Clay.

“It’s fine.”

But Clay didn’t think she had done anything wrong.

“From your perspective, it was the best choice. In fact, it was the best choice for me, too.”

“R-really?”

“Yes.”

Athanasia let out a long sigh of relief, her shoulders easing.

“Thanks for thinking that way. I feel a lot better now.”

“I wasn’t trying to comfort you. I was just stating the truth.”

“Whatever the case, just tell me if something comes up again. I’ll look into it for you.”

When they first met, they had fought as if they meant to kill each other. Now she was saying something genuinely reassuring. Clay gave a wry chuckle.

“Alright.”

Then he moved to the main point.

“Athanasia, I think Lutan has more ancient gods.”

Judging by the situation, Lutan seemed to be adopting a strategy to lure the Demon King’s Army as far inside as possible. It was clearly an intentional provocation.

“If we advance into Krata’s core, he might plan to use the ancient gods.”

“They’ve sealed ancient gods inside Krata?”

Ancient gods were sworn enemies of Elhaen, and naturally, they would have every reason to harbor wrath toward Krata as well.

But to keep such ancient gods within their own territory—Athanasia couldn’t easily accept it.

“Our ancient gods are enemies of Elhaen. Lutan will know that very well.”

And this was the same Lutan who had recently sent out Vald to lay waste to the human world. If the ancient gods were to awaken within his own domain, the resulting chaos could be far beyond his control.

“I’m suddenly getting a bad feeling.”

Athanasia swallowed hard.

“What if we’re walking right into his plan?”

“Then we walk right in.”

Either way, the fact remained—Krata had to be crushed and Lutan had to be eliminated.

“Lutan will never leave his own domain.”

If they wanted to catch him, they would have to step into his lair themselves.

“Don’t worry.”

Clay smiled at her.

“You made me a coexistence form, didn’t you?”

There was no way Lutan had accounted for that in his plans. If they could catch him off guard, they might well be able to strike at his flank.

“Well, fine.”

At Clay’s calm reply, Athanasia’s expression hardened with resolve.

“I’m an ancient god too. I’m not going to be intimidated by something like this.”

“That’s the right way to think.”

Clay rose from his seat.

“Come on, Athanasia. Let’s do what we came here to do.”

She nodded and turned, and Clay followed her out of the room.

There, the soldiers of the Demon King’s Army were already lined up in formation.

—We greet the Demon King!

Their voices rang down the corridor as Clay walked between them, drawing in a deep breath.

There was no more pain.

Holy power and magia—forces that could never coexist—now sat together within him, in the form of coexistence.

♧

“Advance!”

At that moment, Ezer’s army was driving deep into Marfane, the very territory Yuru had once swept through.

“Goddammit!”

From a point not far from the walls, Marfane’s defensive captain cursed as he looked down at Rexton, the knight commander directing Ezer’s troops.

“Why the hell are they coming after us?!”

Ezer had fallen out with Krata. The same was true for Yaphenon. But Marfane had done nothing to earn such direct enmity from Ezer.

That didn’t mean Ezer had no reason to attack, however. If this was part of a plan to sever Krata’s last remaining limbs before striking, then hitting Marfane made perfect sense.

“Damn it all!”

It was understandable—but from the point of view of the one under attack, it was nothing but shocking and infuriating.

Marfane was already in ruins thanks to Yuru. Just repairing the damage would take enormous cost, manpower, and time; there was no way they had the capacity to fend off Ezer’s offensive now.

And then—

Fwoooosh!

When there was even someone raising Ezer’s wounded soldiers back to their feet, the outcome was practically decided from the start.

“Tia de Mezelef…!”

As a Saintess, her healing power was unmatched. Marfane’s healers couldn’t even match half her capability.

“If she’s a Saintess, then why?!”

Even if she had quarreled with Krata and Yaphenon, wasn’t a Saintess supposed to refrain from indiscriminately laying waste to another nation?

She had taken power meant for peace and wielded it for destruction.

“Tia de Mezelef!”

KWA-ANG!

The captain’s cry was swallowed by the shattering of the walls, torn apart by the mages of the Blue Tower assisting Ezer.

“Your Majesty.”

Rexton approached Tia as she both healed the wounded and commanded the troops.

“If we take this fortress, we can march straight for Marfane’s capital.”

“And if the fortress falls, can you take all of Marfane without me?”

“…Pardon?”

Rexton’s eyes widened.

“You mean you won’t see the capital fall yourself—you’re going somewhere else?”

“I need to go to Krata.”

Tia’s voice was calm and low.

“At this point, Marfane won’t even dream of aiding Krata.”

“That’s…”

He couldn’t deny it. Marfane wouldn’t dare offer Krata aid now. In truth, they probably couldn’t have done much even without this attack—they were barely able to protect themselves.

Marfane was already on the verge of collapse.

Rexton recalled what Yuru had done. She hadn’t merely attacked Marfane—she had severed it. At the time, he’d thought she was simply acting out of madness.

But even if that had been madness, in hindsight he could see another layer to it.

Marfane must have been more loyal to Krata.

Yaphenon had been the stronger power, but its loyalty wasn’t born of devotion—it had simply been crushed under Krata’s strength.

Other small nations in the Holy Alliance had watched Marfane closely before making their moves; in that sense, it was no exaggeration to call Marfane Krata’s lapdog.

This is a warning.

With both Yaphenon and Marfane broken, there would be no country eager to step forward. And even if any thought to act simply because they were part of the Holy Alliance, the message was clear—don’t let your arrogance drive you to the same fate.

Yes, their situations were only slightly better than Ezer’s; they hadn’t joined willingly in the first place. So why step forward just to meet the same ruin?

Rexton was certain those nations would stay out of it.

The world’s order was being rewritten—by the Demon King and the Saintess.

“Then, Rexton, I’ll leave this place to you.”

Through the broken walls, Ezer’s soldiers poured in. One by one, Marfane’s banners were torn down and replaced with Ezer’s own.

An unstoppable advance.

“We are the true holy power!”

The soldiers, blessed by Tia herself, believed with all their hearts that they were acting under divine command, cutting through their enemies without mercy.

“…Yes, Your Majesty.”

What else could he say? This war with Marfane wasn’t even a real war. It was just an event to boost Ezer’s soldiers’ morale.

Realizing that sent a shiver down Rexton’s spine.

Her Majesty…

She had become someone entirely different—someone who no longer thought of peace, lives, or her nation’s honor.

“Thank you, Rexton. Now I can focus on my true work without worry.”

She was pursuing dominion.

“Well then, I’ll be going.”

And so she led the Imperial Knights away from the screams and shouts, leaving the scene behind.

(End of Chapter)

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