Chapter 371: Inheritances Distribution Has Been a Serious Problem Since Ancient Times |
The Fallen Dominion had just lost its greatest Arcane—the Golden Lord.
No one knew what kind of butterfly effect this would have, but one thing was certain: the Fallen Dominion had grown weaker.
Moreover, the Golden Lord was both the spiritual and economic ruler of the Fallen Dominion.
With his disappearance, the focal point that held the nation together was gone.
Even if a ceasefire agreement were to be reached, as Hilde pointed out, neither the Fallen Dominion nor any other nation would accept it.
“…Wait.”
At that moment, Peru responded.
Standing beside the Regressor, she let out a few dry coughs before wiping her mouth and speaking to Hilde.
“…We will agree to the ceasefire.”
“…As the Goldenarch.”
Hilde’s expression shifted to surprise.
The Goldenarch was the one who oversaw the guardians of the Golden Palace.
From the beginning, since no one reasonably expected to negotiate with the Golden Lord, their initial negotiation target had been the guardians of the Golden Palace instead.
Since Elric, the previous Goldenarch, had been able to directly convey her will to the Golden Lord, if Peru was now the Goldenarch, she would certainly qualify for negotiations.
The issue was Peru’s legitimacy.
“But aren’t you the Witherarch? From Witherarch to Goldenarch? That sounds… rather poetic~”
Hilde chuckled, lowering her voice before pressing further.
“Or, in other words, completely unrealistic. Why should we believe it? How could Peru, who has been with us, suddenly become the Goldenarch?”
“…Regardless, it’s the truth.”
“Even if it is, who will vouch for that truth? The Golden Lord is gone, isn’t he? And if there is no Golden Lord, what meaning does the Goldenarch even have…?”
At that moment, the golden bell hanging from Peru’s waist rang softly, as if affirming her words.
Of course, the sound of a bell alone wasn’t proof of anything.
But a Divine’s relic wasn’t something that would ring without reason.
- Kuuuuung—!
The debris of collapsed blocks shifted and the Golden Ark suddenly rose from beneath them.
It was the very same Golden Ark that had been “devoured” and broken down into alchemy materials by the Golden Palace.
Since its hull had already been transmuted into raw materials for the Golden Palace, Peru had only brought the Furnace of Decay inside to infiltrate the Golden Lord’s domain.
Or at least, that should have been the case.
Yet now, the Golden Ark emerged completely intact, standing proudly on solid ground—as if it had been spat out whole.
Hilde, startled by the sight, questioned her.
“Oh my~? Peru, did you become the Golden Lord instead of the Goldenarch? If that were the case, you should have just told us!”
“…It’s not my power. It belongs to the relic.”
“So you’re using the Golden Lord’s power? Then doesn’t that make you the Golden Lord?”
“…This power can only repair what is broken. I’m using it, but that doesn’t make me the Golden Lord.”
Even if a tool contained infinite power, the one using it still had limitations.
Compared to the Golden Lord, who still retained the lingering thoughts of Demo and Elric, Peru was lacking.
Just like me.
Even the Golden Lord, despite having the ability to create anything, lacked the imagination to properly design a city.
Everyone has their own shortcomings in some way.
“I appreciate your kind explanation~ But… hmm, what should I do about this?”
Hilde made a troubled face.
Even if there wasn’t solid proof, the fact that Peru had infiltrated the Golden Palace and that the Palace had collapsed afterward was already strong evidence.
And now that Peru was using the Golden Lord’s power, there was even less reason to doubt her.
However, that was only on a personal level.
On a national scale, things were different.
“Peru. You can’t just declare yourself as the leader of a nation and become one—it’s about how many people accept and follow you as their leader. Even in the Military State, there is no king, but everyone follows the Chief Command. No matter how much you call yourself the Goldenarch, who would believe it?”
“…The Dominarch would.”
“That guy is dead. I watched him die with my own two eyes. He distracted the Golden Lord by getting too close. He didn’t have to go that far, but~”
Peru was visibly shocked by the news.
The golden bell in response let out a melancholy chime.
After hesitating for a long time, Peru murmured weakly.
“…I see. Sir Hector… is gone.”
“It was a noble sacrifice. I don’t know if it actually helped, but at least we accomplished our goal! So, what now?”
Hilde wasn’t pressuring Peru out of malice.
As a representative of the Military State, Hilde always acted in its best interests.
She had to secure as many favorable terms as possible from the ceasefire negotiations.
By pointing out Peru’s weaknesses, Hilde was trying to gain the upper hand.
“You call yourself the Goldenarch, but who is going to follow you? Who would trust someone who might have killed the Golden Lord?”
…Of course, that didn’t mean she wasn’t enjoying it.
Just as Hilde was pressuring Peru, a commotion stirred in the distance.
A large group of people—the Dholes who had followed Hector—had arrived late and were cautiously observing the situation.
Among them, one man—dressed far better than the others—stepped forward, drawing everyone’s attention.
“Witherarch. I am Deca, secretary to the Dominarch.”
He was one of Hector’s subordinates, whom I had seen several times in the city.
Recognizing his face, Peru replied in a somber voice.
“…The Dominarch… he…”
“I know. I witnessed it myself.”
The man called Deca briefly closed his eyes out of mourning before continuing.
“I would like to grieve for my Primarch, but these Dholes have left me no room to do so. The moment Hector died, they immediately came to me, demanding his fortune.”
Even at a distance, his voice was loud enough for all the Dholes to hear.
In response, the Dholes erupted in angry shouts.
“The Dominarch said that if we followed him, he would divide his fortune among us!”
“We followed him, so we deserve our share!”
After drawing enough attention, Deca let out a loud cry for all to hear.
“Do you see this? They did nothing to stop the Golden Lord. They did nothing to help you. And yet, simply for following my Primarch, they now demand a reward! What kind of nonsense is this?! On top of that! When my Primarch died, none of them were by his side!”
“Are you insane?! Going there would’ve been suicide!”
“Who the hell smashes their own head against a wall knowing they’ll die?!”
All kinds of jeers and curses were hurled at Deca.
Technically speaking, the Dholes’ argument was valid.
However, with Hector now dead, their shameless demands for a share of his fortune made them seem like vile beasts devoid of humanity.
Using their outcries to solidify his stance, Deca turned to Peru and pressed her.
“Witherarch. It was you who stepped forward to stop the Golden Lord. You saved us and fulfilled the will of the Dominarch. If there is anyone who can rightfully distribute his fortune and oversee the trading company, it is none other than you.”
“…I…”
“Witherarch. Though the Dominarch has passed, our Drum Trading Company is still responsible for Fallen Dominion’s food supply. If it collapses now, the entire nation will starve. You cannot allow that to happen, can you?”
“…Mmm.”
Deca seemed to be genuinely concerned about the future of the Fallen Dominion, making it hard for Peru to respond immediately.
Seeing her hesitation, he subtly pushed further.
“Besides, wouldn’t you need power as well? The Drum Trading Company could be a valuable ally for you, Witherarch.”
He was subtly suggesting that she take over the Drum Trading Company.
Curious about his true intentions, I used Mind Reading to peer into his thoughts.
｢If we obediently dismantle the trading company and hand out our wealth, we’ll be left with nothing! We are the ones keeping the Fallen Dominion running! Even if Sir Hector is gone, we must remain the Drum Trading Company! Without us, the Fallen Dominion will fall apart!｣
He was sincere.
While he did harbor some arrogance—a belief that he was better than the other Dholes—his determination to preserve the trading company, even by making Peru its new leader, was genuine.
Peru looked visibly troubled.
The moment she became the ruler of the Fallen Dominion, one side pressured her into negotiating a ceasefire, while the other bickered over inheritance disputes.
She was on the verge of collapse, especially given her poor physical state.
Peru weakly turned to me and asked.
“…What should I do?”
“Huh? Why are you asking me?”
“…There’s no one else to ask.”
Looking around, Peru sighed gloomily.
She had a point.
Hilde was on the side of the Military State, the Regressor was all about brute force, and Hector, who might have been able to help, was dead.
“I don’t really have an answer for you. Wouldn’t it be better to seek advice from someone else?”
“Someone else…?”
“First, we need to assess the situation properly. Where exactly is the Dominarch’s fortune? He wouldn’t have carried all of it in his Juggernaut, right?”
“…If the wealth is substantial, it’s entrusted to Claudia. It’s the only real city and the Thunderarch has credibility.”
“Then the decision is simple.”
There was nothing we could do here, in the middle of the wasteland.
That left us with only one option.
“Let’s go to Claudia. Once we meet with the Thunderarch, we can shift most of these problems onto him.”
When faced with unsolvable issues, the best solution is to dump them onto someone capable.
How can one person lift a heavy log?
You have to divide the burden.
My suggestion received polarizing reactions.
“Wait. What do you mean by fortune? Are you really planning to divide the Dominarch’s wealth?
“Ugh. That was our chance to swindle some clueless fool~ Father, whose side are you on, really?”
Though Deca and Hilde weren’t exactly thrilled about growing another faction’s power, the others had different reactions.
The Dholes erupted in cheers, Peru accepted the decision, and even Tyr seemed to approve.
“The Village of Clouds… It would not hurt to see how much it has changed.”
｢And if the opportunity arises, I could show Hu the Duchy of Mist beyond it.｣
Even the Regressor, after some thought, agreed.
“Alright, it’s decided. Our next destination is Claudia. We were bound to stop there anyway.”
｢With Chun-aeng and Jizan both in my hands, if I reach Claudia, I might be able to bind the Thunder God within me. Handling these two alone so far has been overwhelming, but if I can get the Thunder God, I might finally gain some balance.｣
…The thought process was a bit different from mine, though.
What Thunder God?
How the hell do you bind a god inside yourself?
Does that mean you can still get stronger at this point?!
Some people can harbor three Divine’s relics and still be just human…!
“…Let’s go to Claudia. If anyone has any issues, we can handle it there.”
With that, the decision was finalized.
Peru moved to board the Golden Ark, but before she could even take a single step, Deca, now visibly flustered, blocked her path.
Had the Regressor not glared daggers at him, he might have even dared to touch her.
“Of course, you may go, but… are you planning to take them with you? They’ll drain the trading company’s fortune!”
“…If that’s the contract.”
“They failed to uphold their end of the contract!”
“…We’ll resolve that in Claudia.”
“That’s ridiculous! This matter is already settled—“
Had Peru been alone, she might have struggled with this.
But she wasn’t alone.
Right beside her was the Regressor, an expert in cutting things off.
Growing increasingly annoyed, the Regressor snapped at Deca.
“Shut it. We don’t have time for this. If you want, stay behind and scavenge whatever you can.”
Even Deca, for all his resolve, had survival instincts.
Biting his tongue, he turned away.
｢This can’t be happening…! I didn’t spend all this time cleaning up after the Golden Lord just to lose everything now! There’s no way I’ll let our trading company disappear like this!｣
Clearly, our business in Claudia isn’t going to be simple.
As I read his thoughts, I nodded knowingly.
The Golden Ark’s horn sounded and the entire group set off toward Claudia.
***
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