Union Conference.
All the races belonging to the alliance gathered in one place to discuss future matters. If it seemed simple, then that person had no idea about the intricate details of the alliance.
In the past, before the demon invasion, the continent was in a frenzy trying to devour each other. In fact, there were races that hated each other even more than the demons.
And they ultimately betrayed the alliance and sided with the demons. They couldn’t bear to see those creatures rise, even if they had to become slaves. Or perhaps, they wanted to kill them with their own hands.
In such a situation, the union conference was undeniably meaningful. After all, it aimed to resolve current issues. It also included the intention to let go of long-held resentments.
‘Too straightforward.’
The representative of the Dwarf Republic, Viral the Chancellor, sighed inwardly at Commander Hans’ words. Maintaining neutrality was akin to standing by.
Of course, if they kept neutrality, immediate problems wouldn’t arise. But they would have to watch the events unfold afterward. That’s neutrality for you. Considering the future, it wasn’t a good choice.
However, no one at the table dared to oppose the Commander’s words. Regardless of the causes or evidences, it was a fact that the Royal Knights had collapsed.
In fact, most of the people gathered here had pressured the Royal Knights back then. To put it simply, the situation was like a thief feeling guilty.
‘But I like it.’
Being straightforward in politics was generally not good. It opens doors for misinterpretation that can incite anger or be used as a weakness. Thus, it’s common to leave some room for maneuver.
However, one couldn’t think of the Royal Knights’ commander as a political rookie. In other words, he must have known everything and still stated it all so plainly to everyone.
Viral the Chancellor was already certain of the reason. To protect their people. To prevent the collapse of the Royal Knights. At that moment, someone sitting next to Viral spoke up.
“Maintaining neutrality… does that mean we can interpret that Royal Knights won’t intervene with other races?”
It was none other than Maquenis the High Elder. An elf who had lived for an eternity. The fact that this old trickster made such a remark meant there was some scheme afoot. There was no helping it here.
“That’s not the meaning, Elder.”
“I see no room for rebuttal.”
“Isn’t it not against the role of the Royal Knights?”
The Royal Knights also served as a safety mechanism mediating and counterbalancing between races. For instance, imagine a terrible incident happening in the Dwarf Republic.
If another race openly blamed the Dwarf Republic, the worst-case scenario could lead to internal strife. But if they warned the republic indirectly through the Royal Knights?
That would be very displeasing for the Dwarf Republic, yet they would have no choice but to accept it. At the very least, they wouldn’t want to offend the Royal Knights. Thus, the alliance was maintained.
It was a haphazard and well-known method, but it was something they could endure. But what if the Royal Knights declared neutrality and completely withdrew from that role?
Then chaos would inevitably return. Especially for elves who openly hated and opposed the Royal Knights. Since they owed him a debt here, they had to support Commander Hans.
“Didn’t you just say you’d maintain neutrality? Yet, you want to intervene in the situation you desire and refuse our interference. That seems like an openly dangerous ulterior motive.”
“It means we’ll be faithful to the role of the Royal Knights. After all, wasn’t the founding purpose of the Royal Knights to unite all races?”
“We have no knowledge of that. We don’t want meddling. If we don’t meddle, then you shouldn’t either.”
Coincidentally, the orc chieftain sitting opposite finally spoke up. He was a massive figure with numerous scars etched into his strong muscles.
His name was Dezra. The king of all orcs who currently governed and dominated them, also known as the Rusty Tyrant. The fools who resort to strength when things don’t go their way.
The reason they weren’t ousted from the alliance was simple. Their substantial power. Although they may lack compared to vampires or dragons, that was by no means a low evaluation.
In fact, being able to stand on par with dragons and vampires already proved the strength of orcs. Moreover, their numbers were far greater than those two.
“How could such a boulder-headed being attend this meeting?”
“What are you saying? I smell beast.”
“How about you shut up if you know nothing?”
“I’ll catch you and eat you. Deliciously. Tonight.”
Moreover, they had a very bad relationship with the Beastmen. Of course, the Beastmen didn’t get along well with dwarves and elves either. But at least they had some exchanges and agreements with the latter two.
With orcs, it was merely a matter of drawing swords at each other. Although the only races the orcs got along with, besides vampires, were none.
Bone King Dezra said with a smile, “Weak beasts, don’t meddle.”
“Want to try that? Green-haired friends?”
“Hold on a minute. Let’s not get too heated, okay?”
The human king was the one who diffused the atmosphere, which seemed about to erupt into a fight. He approached them with his characteristic smiling demeanor. Seeing that, Viral felt relieved.
Of course, humans didn’t have a particularly good relationship with orcs, but they weren’t at the level of cutting off all dealings like other races. They managed to reach some agreements and transactions.
In simpler terms, it was similar to the relationship between dwarves and Beastmen. There were territorial disputes, and the relationship wasn’t great, but at the very least, they could manage minimal conversations.
Besides, the orcs owed the current human king a favor. When the human king spoke, they quietly kept their mouths shut. Thanks to that, they barely averted the conference from spiraling into disaster.
‘Hmm~ This is getting interesting.’
Meanwhile, the blonde vampire watching this entire spectacle smirked slightly. Her red eyes were fixed on the human who caused this uproar. An unknown fact, however.
The reason the vampires sided with the alliance was simple. Because human blood was delicious. Sure, they could exploit humans by joining the demons, capturing them, but…
Most vampires rejected that method. Thus, they remained in the alliance. And in reality, whether vampires liked all human blood was not true.
Only the blood of the strong.
That was the reason vampires stayed in the alliance. To easily obtain the blood of the strong, it was better to be on the same side. Battle to suppress the strong? That was impossible.
Even if it were possible, if by any chance one were to die, they couldn’t continuously extract blood. Thus, it was advantageous to stay as allies and obtain blood through trade.
And right now, the Vampire Lord’s interest was solely focused on one person. The newly appointed commander of the Royal Knights, Hans, the one who revived the Royal Knights which had collapsed in just a year.
Most importantly, despite being ambushed by three Blood Demons, he had repelled all three, proving himself as the legitimate strongest of the Royal Knights. The former commander was a dragon and thus didn’t have much of a taste.
But who would have thought a human would rise as the commander of the Royal Knights? Naturally, it was impossible for a vampire who relished human blood to not drool at the thought. She had to meet him carefully later.
“It seems like we’re giving too much convenience to the Royal Knights.”
“It can’t be seen as convenience.”
“They’ve produced results. So they deserve to be treated well.”
“Results? I don’t know about that. Go die, beast.”
Today’s meeting ended drawing a parallel line. Typically, union meetings lasted at least a week or more. Unifying everyone’s opinions was a difficult task.
However, one thing they could all agree on was that, like it or not, the current commander of the Royal Knights was not someone to be underestimated. If you wanted to put it positively, he was courageous; negatively, a lone wolf.
However, no one doubted the commander’s abilities. He had restored the collapsed Royal Knights in just a year, and even repelled three Blood Demons.
Now, what remained was to maximize their benefits from this meeting. For that, they needed to contact the commander first. Just as everyone thought that…
‘What the heck? I don’t understand a thing… I just want to focus on catching demons, that’s all.’
Despite everyone secretly overestimating him, Commander Hans was struggling to keep up with the plethora of agendas at the meeting.
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