The sky above the Royal Capital was covered in crimson flames and ash-colored smoke.
What started as a tiny spark quickly spread into a massive inferno.
The burning buildings were like the hellfire itself.
The sight of people fleeing in screams, collapsing building debris, and monsters emerging from between them was like a nightmare come true.
People, terrified, screamed and rushed out into the streets.
But soon, they were torn apart by the swarming monsters.
The streets of the kingdom, stained with blood, were filled with unending cries and wails.
If hell exists, would it look like this?
The Sail Kingdom was in such chaos that one might think so.
* * *
‘Help Princess Irena and make her the queen.’
This was the content of the Special Mission.
To accomplish the mission, a large number of monsters were dispatched to the Sail Kingdom.
Based on past experience, I thought this would be over quickly.
But a variable emerged.
– The monster ‘Death Knight (★★★★★)’ was continuously affected by the Demonic Sword.
“What?”
An alert popped up stating that the Death Knight was influenced by the Demonic Sword. The alert didn’t stop there.
– Due to the influence of the Demonic Sword, the Death Knight’s rank has been temporarily upgraded.
– The legendary monster, Death Knight King (★★★★★★★), has temporarily evolved.
The 5-star Death Knight had suddenly become a 7-star Death Knight King.
“Huh…”
What is going on?
A 7-star monster out of nowhere.
It was a rank that had never appeared, not even on the El Dorado Continent, let alone in gacha pulls. The only encounters were through ancient texts or stories heard while I was in El Dorado Continent.
‘Celia is only 6-star, and a 7-star appears?’
If the Death Knight became stronger, it would be beneficial to me as well.
But there was a reason why I couldn’t be entirely happy.
The first reason was.
– The temporary evolution of the Death Knight King will be reversed in 6 hours.
– After the temporary evolution is reversed, it will be incapacitated for a certain period.
The Death Knight’s evolution to 7-star was only temporary.
It wasn’t a complete evolution.
‘Well, if it evolved to 7-star permanently, it would be cheating.’
If it just gets influenced by the Demonic Sword and evolves?
I would have handed the Demonic Sword to all the monsters in the dungeon in turns.
That would obviously break the balance.
Furthermore, I could control the El Dorado Continent as I pleased.
But the Death Knight had a time limit of 6 hours to maintain its 7-star status.
‘This is really awkward.’
The 6-hour timeframe is too ambiguous.
And it would be incapacitated after 6 hours?
“Huh.”
But how strong would a 7-star existence be?
I hadn’t experienced it firsthand, so it didn’t quite sink in.
At least one fact was certain.
With the current Death Knight King, it would be possible to destroy the Sail Kingdom multiple times within the time limit.
The problem was that I didn’t dispatch monsters with the intention of destroying the Sail Kingdom.
‘If the kingdom is destroyed, Princess Irena can’t become queen, can she?’
The main objective of this mission was the princess, after all.
For that very reason, I devised a plan using Maru. It made no sense to destroy the kingdom if the goal was to crown Princess Irena as queen.
“I can’t send it elsewhere either.”
The monsters I summoned have a fixed range of action.
Dispatching monsters to the Sail Kingdom was possible due to the Special Mission; it wouldn’t be feasible under normal circumstances.
More importantly, I couldn’t send the Death Knight King elsewhere.
– Actions beyond the designated range of action are not permitted.
The only thing I could do was send it back to my dungeon?
But that would be meaningless, wouldn’t it?
For now, the Death Knight King must be utilized to the fullest in the Sail Kingdom.
However, another problem arises here.
It was about how much to utilize the Death Knight King.
If I had my way, I would have also let the Death Knight King rampage freely.
But reality is different.
‘There must have been signs when the Death Knight evolved…’
If the records in the books were true, signs announcing the birth of a 7-star would have appeared throughout the entire El Dorado Continent.
The Church would have immediately started preparing for war.
Naturally, all the nations on the continent, not just the Church, would be watching.
The only fortunate thing might be that only signs would appear, and the location of the entity wouldn’t be known.
In such a situation, actively utilizing the Death Knight King would be no different from advertising that there is a 7-star in the Sail Kingdom.
‘Even if the princess ascends to the throne, it would be a problem.’
That was obvious.
Would the entire world leave the Sail Kingdom, where a 7-star monster appeared, alone?
‘They wouldn’t leave a potential threat unchecked.’
It was obvious even without seeing it.
The first to act would be the Church.
All of the Church’s forces would march to the Sail Kingdom and search it meticulously.
Of course, the Death Knight King wouldn’t be there due to the 6-hour time limit, but the Church wouldn’t stop.
They might even designate the entire Sail Kingdom as heretical.
‘The Church is capable of such things.’
The problem was that it wouldn’t end there.
Other nations would surely follow the Church and send their forces.
All nations and the Church might even join forces to erase the Sail Kingdom from the continent.
It would be fortunate if it ended there.
Although it would be regrettable, I could cut my losses with the Sail Kingdom.
But they would investigate the surroundings after the Sail Kingdom.
The surroundings would be a mountain range.
Furthermore, my dungeon exists in the mountain range.
‘There’s a risk of my dungeon being exposed too.’
Even if I hide it, it would only be a matter of time before its location is discovered if all nations on the continent begin their investigations.
And they would act to subjugate dungeons as soon as they are discovered, under the pretext of purification.
‘Can I possibly stop all of them?’
The answer was ‘no’.
I shook my head.
Perhaps I could stop them a few times.
My dungeon has Celia, 5-star monsters, and various other monsters.
If I summon monsters in real-time, defense wouldn’t be impossible.
But that would only be for the first few times. I couldn’t stop the continuous onslaught of numbers.
‘Eventually, the dungeon will be subjugated.’
If my dungeon is subjugated like that?
I would meet my death along with it.
There was only one course of action for me now.
The existence of the Death Knight King must absolutely not be revealed.
The right choice was to tell it to stay quiet for 6 hours and wait for the evolution to be reversed.
‘It’s a shame, but it can’t be helped.’
It’s not that I don’t want to see the Death Knight in action.
If I could send the Death Knight King to other countries, I wouldn’t have this worry.
I touched the screen immediately, pushing aside my regret.
I moved my hands to issue orders to Celia.
– Conceal the identity of the Death Knight King.
Reducing variables was the best course of action right now.
“Still, I learned about the Demonic Sword, so let’s be satisfied with this.”
Through this Special Mission, I learned more about the utilization of the Demonic Sword.
If monsters are continuously influenced by the Demonic Sword, they evolve.
Thanks to this, I thought of several strategies involving the Demonic Sword.
‘Well, let’s finish the mission for now.’
I hoped for the successful completion of this Special Mission.
* * *
Celia smiled faintly as she watched the burning kingdom.
Someone appeared behind her as she leisurely observed.
“Um, um, the tea is ready…”
A human woman dressed as a maid appeared.
The maid, with trembling hands, brought a tray. The sound of the cups on the tray was loud due to how severely her hands shook.
“Here, please enjoy…”
The maid’s voice trembled severely, and tears welled up in her eyes.
The fear etched on her pale face revealed how terrified she was of Celia.
The maid glanced at Celia and quickly averted her gaze.
Celia looked at the tea the maid had given her.
The silver tea leaves floating on the teacup were impressive. Perhaps because the leaves themselves were silver, the brewed tea also held a silvery sheen.
“Hmm, it smells nice?”
It smelled like a blend of flowers and sweet fruits.
Celia brought the teacup to her lips.
The fragrant tea flowed smoothly into her mouth.
It surely smelled sweet, but there was no sweet taste when she drank it. Instead, a deep, rich flavor greeted Celia.
“What is this tea called?”
Celia seemed pleased with the tea and asked the maid for its name.
However, the maid was too terrified to answer.
“P-please spare me!”
Instead, she dropped to her knees and begged for her life.
It was natural.
She was originally a normal maid working in a noble’s mansion. Or at least she was until a little while ago.
Then, suddenly, this woman with horns appeared.
When she appeared, the mansion turned into a scene from hell.
From the maid’s perspective, it was right to say that people suddenly went mad.
Knights and soldiers committed suicide by stabbing themselves with their weapons.
Others did the same.
The noble the maid served hanged himself, and his wife repeatedly smashed her head against a stone in the garden.
It was truly a terrifying and bizarre event.
And currently, this maid was the sole survivor in the mansion.
“Oh dear. I’m asking, aren’t I? What is this tea called?”
Celia grabbed the maid’s head, who was crying and pleading.
Then she looked into her eyes.
“Please spare me…”
The maid’s eyes lost focus.
It was as if her soul had been drained.
“…”
Celia smiled and asked again.
“What is the name of this tea?”
“Yes, it is a tea called ‘Breath of Moonlight.’ The name was given because these tea leaves can only be harvested once in a hundred years, on the night of the blue moon.”
The maid answered Celia’s question expressionlessly.
Her voice no longer trembled as it did before.
“Indeed. Bring me all the ‘Breath of Moonlight’ from within the mansion.”
The maid immediately left at Celia’s command.
Celia finished the remaining tea. And.
“My Master gave me an order.”
She received another order from the Great One.
Shadows appeared at Celia’s words.
“Mr. Death Knight, no, Mr. Death Knight King. Convey this message: stay quiet for 6 hours.”
Master had instructed her to conceal the Death Knight King’s appearance.
What was the meaning of those words?
Celia understood.
‘As expected of my Master.’
It must be that Master judged that it wasn’t necessary to show all her cards. Celia nodded and issued further commands to the shadows.
“Master does not wish for the Death Knight King to be revealed to the world. Therefore, if anyone witnesses the Death Knight King, eliminate them all.”
Even if their identity were revealed, the witnesses could be eliminated.
Master would probably want this too.
One of the shadows disappeared at Celia’s command.
She then commanded the remaining shadows.
“Mr. Necros’s strategy was excellent. You are doing a great job.”
Necros had used the Skeletons to herd humans towards Princess Irena’s location.
And then he showed himself to Princess Irena’s knights and Maru, staging a scenario where he was defeated.
Thanks to this, Princess Irena was receiving overwhelming support from the people.
“Mr. Necros, please continue doing just that.”
Another shadow disappeared after Celia finished speaking.
“Mr. Better is doing well, so it’s fine to leave him be.”
Better, a subordinate officer of the dungeon managed by Azmo.
Despite being a slime, he was known as a master of transformation.
In fact, Better was moving very busily.
– Her Highness the Princess is leading the knights to subjugate monsters! Everyone gather around Her Highness!
– Her Highness the Princess has subjugated the Arch Lich!
Mr. Better, transformed into a human, was gathering people. His mission was to spread news of the Princess’s heroic deeds to as many people as possible.
It wasn’t just that either.
Better robbed money from nearby shops and hired instigators with that money.
– The kingdom’s nobles made a contract with demons to cause this incident!
– Everyone, lend your strength to the Princess!!
Thanks to this, he easily incited the crowd.
The effect of the instigation was immediate.
People enraged by the current situation were gathering at the nobles’ mansions, armed with crude weapons and sticks.
Princess Irena’s position was steadily rising at this very moment.
Celia was satisfied as the goal drew nearer.
“A new kingdom for Master is not far off.”
* * *
The march of the knights led by Princess Irena halted.
And one knight shouted loudly.
“Arch Lich spotted ahead!”
The 5-star monster, Arch Lich, appeared.
However, there was no fear on the faces of the knights.
Having already subjugated the Arch Lich twice, they were confident they would win this time too.
“Knights, form your ranks! Mages, prepare shields!”
And Maru, standing next to the Princess, was given a task.
“Sir Maru! Please do your best again this time.”
A knight respectfully requested.
The knights were showing respect to Maru.
From their perspective, Maru had already subjugated the Arch Lich twice.
And with a single blow, no less.
The knights were truly amazed by Maru’s power.
‘As expected of someone who used to be a Paladin.’
Thanks to this, the story of Maru being a former Paladin spread throughout the entire knight order.
With just one blast of Holy Power, the Arch Lich vanished without a trace, so no one doubted Maru.
Amidst the knights’ cheers, Maru drew his sword.
He stepped forward, exuding Holy Power.
At that moment, the Arch Lich in front of them began to shout loudly.
“Click, click, click, click!”
The Arch Lich’s sudden action.
Could it be preparing to cast a spell!
The knights became urgent.
“The Arch Lich is about to use magic! Cast your shields immediately!”
However, Maru could hear the Arch Lich’s words.
– This time, I’m wearing a brown robe!
This was Maru and Necros’s third meeting.
“Click, click, click!”
(Next time, I’ll appear in a red robe!)
And he promised their fourth meeting for just now.
“Click, click.”
(For the meeting after that, I’ll send a Dullahan.)
He even promised their fifth meeting.
“Mages, what are you doing! Cast your shields quickly!”
This Arch Lich’s dark magic incantation was quite long, causing the knights to tremble in fear.
