Chapter 3 |
The dawn of a new day has arrived.
In the center of the Schlange Continent, near the capital of a certain kingdom, over ten thousand soldiers gathered around an abandoned castle.
"Death to the Demon King!"
"We must defeat the Demon King!"
"Death to the Demon King!"
The soldiers chanted in unison as they slowly advanced towards the castle.
Inside the castle, I sat on the throne and muttered to myself;
"Where is this so-called Demon King, I wonder?"
"You! They're talking about you!" Allen replied with a sigh.
"I only defeated some bandits."
"You did it in such a flashy way, though!"
All I did was fire a few thousand magic blasts from the sky and I even took out the surrounding monsters. If anything, I should be thanked, not labeled as the Demon King.
"This continent is really troublesome. Can't we just talk it out?"
"If someone as powerful as you took over an abandoned castle near the capital, of course they'd send the army! What are we going to do? With that many soldiers, there's no way we can escape..."
Allen clutched his head and stared at the army outside. They were well-equipped and well-disciplined—a proper regular army.
While it's commendable that they responded so quickly to a potential threat that is near the capital, they could at least send a messenger first. I acted with good intentions, after all.
"They ignored the bandits, but they won't leave me alone?"
"Do you really think that you're on the same threat level as bandits? You...?"
"I'm not that modest," I replied while crossing my legs and conjuring a small magic blast.
Allen's face immediately tensed up. He knew the power behind my casually created magic.
"Don't attack them! The soldiers haven't done anything wrong!"
"I'm not that reckless. I just want to have a little chat with them since they've come all this way from the capital."
"You're calling this like you are 'visiting' them... when it's an army..."
Allen sighed in exasperation, his shoulders slumping. He’d been like this since yesterday.
It was about time that he understood that my level of common sense was different from his.
I launched the magic blast into the sky. It shot up at high speed, reached the upper atmosphere and then exploded in a bright flash that made everyone instinctively close their eyes—Allen and the soldiers included.
At that moment, I used teleportation magic to bring the leader of the enemy army to the castle. I identified him as the leader by his distinctive armor and the crest on his cape, which matched the army's flag.
He was likely a member of the royal family—a young man in his late twenties with red hair and red eyes.
"Welcome to my castle. Although, it's just a temporary base."
"So you're the Demon King!" he shouted while drawing his sword and pointing it at me.
I remained seated on the throne and asked calmly, "Is it such a terrible thing to defeat bandits?"
"It's not that you defeated those bandits, but the way you did it! You launched a massive attack within our kingdom without any warning and you expect us to believe that you're harmless?"
"I apologize for that. It wasn’t meant to be such a large-scale attack."
"Hmph... How can you say that with a straight face?"
The young man clearly thought I was lying. So, I raised my right hand toward the sky.
"What are you doing?"
"I just want to clarify a few things. I don't wish to be hostile as I'd rather have a conversation and I have no intention of harming the innocent. The attack on the bandits was merely a greeting, nothing more than that."
With that, I concentrated my magic in my right hand. To have a meaningful discussion, there needs to be a shared understanding.
This young man believed I was lying while thinking I had intentionally tried to intimidate them. I needed to show him that wasn't my intent.
"I am the one who knows the laws of silver. I am chosen by true silver. The heat of this silver lightning is a symbol of divine authority. The sound of this silver lightning is the echo of divine words. Oh, silver lightning, roar and cry out by my hand! Let me demonstrate the will of the silver heavens—Silvery Lightning!"
Silver lightning erupted from my right hand. The power was far beyond the mere magic bullets that I had used on the bandits. The force split the sky and shook the earth.
The young man could do nothing but stare in stunned silence at the sky.
"Do you now believe that I wasn't lying?"
"...It seems that I must believe it now."
The young man slowly lowered his sword. Then, he spoke.
"I apologize for my rudeness. I believed that you were a threat to the capital and mobilized the army."
"Your actions are understandable. However, it was still rude and so, I would like you to grant me one request."
"I doubt that I have any choice in the matter... You could easily destroy the capital if you wanted."
"Again, I have no intention of doing that. I'm searching for ancient texts or ruins from a thousand years ago. Do you know of any?"
"Ancient texts or ruins from a thousand years ago... Are you studying ancient magical civilizations?"
"Something like that."
The young man seemed to ponder my words for a moment, but he didn't take long before responding again.
"I will invite you to the castle as an honored guest and grant you access to the royal library. You may find something there."
"I appreciate it. Does that mean that you're a prince?"
"You brought me here without knowing? My name is Wilfred Allergard and I'm the first prince of the Allergard Kingdom. Now may I know your name?"
"Silver. That's the name I go by."
"How fitting, indeed," Wilfred said with a wry smile.
As the conversation continued, Allen, who had been quietly standing beside me, whispered.
"So... Does this mean that I'm free to go? Since we’re headed to the capital and all..."
"You'll be staying with me for a while longer. I want to repay you for your help."
"No, thanks. Your kind of repayment is way too scary."
"Don't be shy."
With that, I stood up from the throne, ready to leave for the capital.
TL's Notes:Happy late new year!!!
Previous Chapter