Eve of War (3)

Left alone in the reception room after even Gallea Spirin had departed, I knew it might be improper, but I put tobacco in my mouth and lit it.

“Phew……”

There was too much to think about.

Dealing with Belial’s forces was difficult enough, but human relationships were never simple enough to focus on just one aspect.

Pondering the complexities of such a world, I stepped out of the room.

And immediately after leaving, I discovered Línea leaning against the wall, waiting for me.

“Línea.”

“Lost.”

“Come here.”

I embraced Línea.

I remembered how she had been particularly prickly toward Ilina Crowley and others.

Back then, I simply thought it was jealousy.

But after my recent meeting with Gallea Spirin, my perspective changed.

She was simply more anxious than anyone else. Because she knew how her parents had split apart because of her.

That’s why she craved a love that wouldn’t change.

“I’ve been… so thoughtless.”

“It’s okay.”

“No, I’m not okay.”

She was particularly fond of physical affection. She always tried to stay close to me.

Recently, while grappling with women issues, I had maintained an equal distance from everyone.

How anxious must that have made her? How much must it have troubled her?

“I love you.”

“Yes! I love you too.”

I decided to love her in a way that would ensure she’d never feel anxious again.

Because now I knew that was the best I could do.

I embraced her, caressed her, and kissed her.

And so I pledged my love.

*     *      *

“Well now.”

Ilina Crowley clicked her tongue as she observed the two from a distance.

She had known this would happen, of course.

They had different starting points, and the depth of their emotional exchange was different from the beginning.

Still, it was impossible not to feel disappointed.

“To think I’d be a concubine.”

The thought that she, a princess no less, would be a concubine.

Of course, her kingdom, Arcanum, was barely the size of a city. In terms of size, it wasn’t much different from the Spirin earldom.

But still, disappointment was unavoidable.

“What about you? Are you okay with this?”

Ilina Crowley, wearing a displeased expression, took a swig from a bottle of alcohol before addressing Eve, who was floating near her perch on the roof.

“Well, honestly, it would be funny for me to be greedy in this situation.”

“Is that so? Weren’t you two in love since much earlier?”

“For me, just being able to spend even a little more time with Cielo feels like a dream.”

Eve had entrusted everything to Lost. She had sacrificed herself to make a wish that couldn’t have been more selfish. And yet, here she was now.

Cowardly as it might be. Having gained far too much happiness.

That’s why she decided to stand one step back. It was her minimal atonement to the world for arbitrarily turning back time.

Nevertheless, she was happy.

Because she could walk under the same sky as the person she loved.

“And well……”

Eve floated up once more.

“Being first isn’t the only thing that matters.”

“Ha! Acting so innocent.”

She lay down in the sky, wearing a confident smile.

*     *      *

The devil’s forces were drawing closer by the minute. It didn’t look like they were preparing for a preliminary skirmish.

They moved as if desiring a short, decisive battle, with all the demonic forces advancing at once. Consequently, the imperial army, which had been retreating while preparing defenses, had no choice but to fall back even further.

Unlike the devil’s forces, which never tired and needed no supplies, humans needed food and rest.

“Your Majesty, the forces are advancing faster than we anticipated. At this rate, the dispatches won’t reach the other domains in time to establish the front line where we had planned.”

“……Damn it. This is beyond imagination. Looking at it now, if it weren’t for my brother, we would’ve been devoured in the blink of an eye.”

Creden G Eden was grappling with the reports coming in while they moved in haste.

At first, other nobles had been angry, asking why he had poked the sleeping lion. But now that things had come to this, they were all chilled to the bone. No one blamed Cotinus anymore.

The devil’s forces were strong, fast, and above all, blatant.

It was now accepted that Belial had been preparing for war for a long time.

One example was how he had quietly dealt with the Ares Kingdom, which could have attacked from the rear.

“What do you think? If my brother were here, could he move the army more flexibly?”

“……”

“Ah, never mind. I asked a difficult question. Well… let’s do what we can for now. Continue sending dispatches.”

The influential nobles of the empire, including Creden, had already retreated from the front lines.

For the small and medium-sized domains and villages that hadn’t yet received the news, it was uncertain whether people would reach them first, or the devil would.

“And we haven’t even properly joined forces yet……”

Creden hadn’t even reached the Forys duchy, where they were supposed to rendezvous.

They had planned to establish a front line and withdraw slowly, but the situation had become too precarious.

Of course, he could have escaped alone by now. The imperial family did have a 7th circle magician, after all.

Using teleportation, he could have moved to the Forys duchy immediately without any issues.

But a proper front line hadn’t even been established yet.

In such a situation, the commander-in-chief’s desertion would do no good.

“I’m getting anxious because the chain of command still isn’t settled.”

And the biggest reason for this was that the empire had been unstable to begin with.

The surrounding countries that had been forcibly annexed were now using the current situation to assert their rights. It was truly a case of reaping what one had sown.

Of course, Belial had been pulling the strings behind most of these issues. But it was Creden himself who had turned a blind eye to it.

“I’ll go down in history as an incompetent ruler. Though that’s only if I survive this war.”

He was doing his best in his own way.

Despite having the devil’s forces so close, he wasn’t retreating to the rear but was managing the front lines. In the current situation, that would be difficult without using his position as Emperor.

Creden felt anxious about the situation, which seemed meticulously designed. He instinctively knew.

‘This isn’t going to work.’

The situation was far too favorable for the enemy.

If they fought unprepared like this, it would be a one-sided game.

But if they continued to retreat and try to establish a system, they would be gradually whittled away.

Even now, the news hadn’t reached many of the small and medium-sized domains.

No matter how hard the messengers tried, some would inevitably be crushed.

“What about the request for cooperation from Arcanum? Is that damned old man still maintaining his silence?”

“The messenger who went to convey our stance hasn’t returned yet.”

“Tsk……”

Creden already knew that Arcanum had established its own defensive system. It appeared to be so robust that even imperial magicians wouldn’t dare tamper with it, suggesting they intended to lock themselves away until the war ended.

‘Well, with that damned old man, he could probably survive in there until he dies. Honestly, if I could do the same, I would. What a mess this is.’

Creden swallowed his frustration at the current situation and continued to command the chaotic front lines.

Despite having obtained it through dirty and vile means, he was the Emperor.

He had to fulfill his responsibilities.

That was his tribute to the siblings he had killed and driven away.

“Your Majesty!”

“Another emergency? I’ve received over 20 emergency reports today alone, so I’m getting a bit tired of them.”

Creden responded with a nonchalant attitude. He might have been startled at first, but when every moment is a continuous emergency, even surprise becomes exhausting.

“We’ve received a response from Arcanum! The Mystic King, Castian Crowley, has personally expressed his intention to lead troops and join the allied forces!”

“That old man? He’s not the type… Anyway, that’s good news after a long time. A cause for celebration.”

Creden responded with the same indifferent attitude. Of course, inside, he was rejoicing.

If a 7th circle grand mage is said to be equivalent to an entire legion, what would an 8th circle magician be?

The reason they had recognized Arcanum’s independence was that they didn’t want to create an enemy the size of a kingdom just for one city.

“So? Where is the Mystic King now? When is he expected to join?”

“The Mystic King says he will head straight to the front lines to buy time for the retreat of small and medium-sized domains.”

“That’s a relief. Still, make sure the dispatches go out without delay. No matter how impressive the Mystic King is, he can’t cover everything.”

The situation wasn’t bad.

At least they now only had to target areas that weren’t blocked by the Mystic King.

“Hmm……”

Of course, that’s assuming the devil doesn’t take the field personally.

If Belial appeared on the front lines, even the Mystic King wouldn’t be able to hold out for long.

After all, even Edge Forys hadn’t bought much time.

‘These are truly the end times.’

Creden freshly felt the absence of Edge Forys.

He had been such a thorn in his side when he was facing off against Wallace Hope, but now, in this situation, he was sorely missed.

“Perhaps he left early to avoid seeing this mess.”

Creden shook his head.

It was a funny thing to say, even to himself.

Somehow, it seemed like something Edge Forys would genuinely do. Perhaps because he could picture it so vividly, Creden sighed instead of shedding tears of mourning.

“Let’s continue.”

Creden was still establishing the command structure on the front lines.

So far, there had been no reports of the devil’s movements.

Yes, it was too quiet.

“I don’t like this feeling. Where is the Pantheon Temple now?”

He naturally sought the divine.

*     *      *

While everyone was busy preparing for war.

Eremus was lazily sunbathing.

Although he was in a doll’s body, he could still feel the warmth of the sun. That was thanks to Hecate’s consideration.

Eremus enjoyed experiencing the world in this way, except for the time he spent with Lilia.

As he was alone, feeling the sunshine in a place with few people, Eremus slightly opened one eye and said.

“So… it was you after all. The one pulling the strings behind all of this.”

“It’s quite disappointing, isn’t it? That people are forgetting the existence of gods.”

Devil of Sorrow, Revenna.

She was boldly taking a stroll through the Forys duchy.

She had created shade with a parasol to hide from people’s attention.

In reality, there weren’t many who would recognize her anyway.

“Depending on the interests at stake, a perfectly fine god becomes a devil, an evil deity, and is erased from the world. As if it were the natural order of things.”

“That would be the will of the gods.”

“Haha, so you knew.”

The gods severed their connection with this world. Of course, they didn’t do it all at once.

First, they left the world.

Then, they ensured that no more gods or devils would be born.

And eventually, they began to erase their own existence one by one. Or rather, they allowed themselves to be erased.

That was the oath the gods had made, staking their names and divinity.

Because of this, Morpheus, who had chosen to remain on earth, lost his sanity and came to be known merely as one of the trials.

A fallen god should be famous, but only a few priests of the Pantheon Temple knew about it.

“……But, the more desperate people become, the more they seek the divine. Is that why you started this war?”

“Of course not. This war is entirely Belial’s plan.”

“Then?”

“Haha, our relationship isn’t deep enough for me to tell you that.”

“Eehee! You’re right, it isn’t. Why did I even try to converse with ‘you’?”

Boom!

Eremus slowly stood up and took a step forward. As the doll’s foot touched the ground, there was a tremendous sound, and the form of a young boy appeared.

“We were never on conversational terms to begin with. Isn’t that right?”

“Is that so? That’s a shame. I’ve been curious about you for a while.”

Eremus’s power was clearly beyond standard. It had already become enough to devour even the ranks of gods and devils, too great to have been achieved by a mere human body.

A closed world where neither gods nor devils could be born anymore. Within it, something infinitely close to a god had been born.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to learn more about your existence.”

The chance to know his identity had come.

Revenna spun her parasol in a circle and moved as if dancing.

The parasol seemed to cover her body, and then it revealed two silhouettes.

“Hadard, may I ask for your assistance?”

“Well… in my current state, even I can’t be certain.”

The Devil King, Hadard, slowly drew his sword with a pleased expression.

—

Translator Note:

Besides changing the way I translated Belial from demon to devil, the change effected both Revenna and Hadard too since the author uses the same word describing the two (비탄). Of course, this is my own interpretation. The word (비탄) can also be translated as “demon” too. I’m sorry for causing this confusion later on the story.