While Azmo and Vestera were causing trouble on Earth, chaos had descended upon the El Dorado Continent due to the appearance of a 7-Star Monster.
However, this was seen as an opportunity by some.
“This is our final chance. The Sail Empire must be in disarray.”
A group of around 30 people cloaked in black gathered in one place.
They were all rebels who dreamed of reclaiming the former Free City Alliance, filled with hatred and vengeance against the Empire.
Even though Roisel, the leader of the rebellion, was dead, they couldn’t give up on their cause.
“Everyone, think about it!”
A scrawny man standing in the center of the underground room clenched his fist.
His name was Laurent.
He was now the one burdened with the heavy responsibility of leading this cause to success, following in Roisel’s footsteps.
“The appearance of the 7-Star Monster is surely a divine revelation sent to us. This must be the Goddess’s wrath upon the lawless Irena, who annexed the Free City Alliance by force!”
“That’s right!”
“Indeed! Indeed!”
Laurent’s words were met with a faint cheer from the people in the underground room.
Everyone seemed to agree with him.
“The Sail army will be busy dealing with the chaos caused by the monster’s appearance. Now is the time for us to strike the first blow!”
Laurent paused for a moment to catch his breath before continuing.
“Most importantly, I had a dream last night.”
The sudden mention of a dream perplexed the crowd. However, they all listened quietly.
“In my dream, a beautiful being smiled at me. It was a Goddess with red eyes. She promised me victory!”
Laurent’s eyes shone as he recalled the dream. He claimed that because the Goddess herself was watching over him, this endeavor was bound to succeed.
Of course, he himself could not be sure if he had truly met a Goddess, but it was enough to instill courage in the people.
As Laurent had expected, the people began to react.
Perhaps a spark of hope to reclaim their homeland, the Free City Alliance, ignited in their hearts.
“Tomorrow night, we move. Everyone prepare. The resurrection of the Free City Alliance begins!”
Upon Laurent’s stirring speech, everyone raised their fists.
“For freedom!”
Everyone chanted his slogan.
It was then.
“Everyone, stop!”
With a sudden shout, the door to the underground room was shattered. The clanking of metal boots and the sound of armor colliding were heard simultaneously.
“It’s the Sail Empire’s Royal Guard! Everyone kneel and put your hands over your heads!”
Sail Empire Royal Guard soldiers poured into the entrance of the underground room, gripping sharp spears and swords.
Caught in the sudden raid, the Free City Alliance rebels fell into chaos.
Excitement vanished from everyone’s faces, replaced by fear.
“How could this happen…”
Laurent’s face turned pale. His lips began to dry and crack.
The imperial soldiers had completely surrounded the underground room.
Where did the information leak from?
Their plan had been kept perfectly secret, known only to those gathered in the underground room.
At that moment, a woman slowly emerged from among the soldiers.
She was an unbelievably beautiful woman.
But Laurent knew her face.
“Who… who are you?!”
Laurent looked at her, and she resembled the woman from his dream last night. No, she was exactly the same.
“What is going on…”
Laurent couldn’t understand.
He couldn’t comprehend why a woman from his dream appeared to be someone related to the Sail Empire.
Was it just a coincidence?
Unfortunately, it was no mere coincidence.
The woman walking slowly and elegantly among the soldiers was named Celia.
She was a being who had recently evolved from a 6-Star to a 7-Star Succubus Empress.
Celia smiled faintly at Laurent. Her smile made Laurent’s legs tremble.
“Are you disappointed that the one you saw in your dream wasn’t a Goddess, Mr. Laurent?”
Celia’s voice was as sweet as honey laced with a subtle poison.
Laurent didn’t know how she knew his name.
He was simply too overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events to react.
However, Celia was laying the foundation for her Master.
The Sail Empire needed to stabilize as soon as possible so that further plans could be made.
Her mission was to eliminate all sparks of rebellion beforehand, for the day her Master would descend upon this world.
These insects could not be tolerated any longer.
Therefore, as soon as she became a 7-Star, Celia began to infiltrate the dreams of humans throughout the Sail Empire.
It wasn’t difficult to penetrate the dreams of those with ambitions and those who dreamed of rebellion, and to glimpse their plans.
This was a power that became possible after she became a Succubus Empress.
Through this dream exploration, she identified those with impure intentions and then brought soldiers to execute them, just as she had done now.
This was Celia’s best course of action for her Master.
“Well, everything here is useless.”
At Celia’s words, the soldiers approached.
Their eyes were not normal. They were humans already enthralled by the succubus.
As Celia gestured, the soldiers began to swing their weapons.
The sounds of sharp swords cutting flesh and spears piercing bodies echoed in the underground room.
“H-help us!”
“Please have mercy…!”
Screams erupted one after another. Cries of pain and terror filled the underground room.
The sounds of blood splattering and flesh being torn were vividly heard.
Celia stood motionless, her eyes gently closed.
Her red lips curved into a faint smile. She had an expression like a noble lady peacefully listening to birdsong in a garden.
“Ah…”
A small gasp escaped Celia’s lips.
As the screams reached their climax, Celia’s fingers drew small circles in the air as if conducting an orchestra.
It was like the delicate gesture of a conductor leading the final crescendo of an orchestra.
Thud.
The dull sound of a body falling to the floor. For Celia, it was a perfect finale.
“Music isn’t just heard with the ears,”
Celia whispered. Her eyes were still closed, but her lips now held a full smile.
“The sound of death, the final breath as life departs. All of this becomes a beautiful melody.”
A red wave spread across the blood-soaked floor of the underground room.
Celia finally opened her eyes. Her irises glowed with a sharper red than usual.
Her eyes held a deep satisfaction, as if drawn from the abyss.
“I wish my Master could have heard this harmony as well,”
Celia sighed softly, placing a hand on her chest. She looked like an audience member feeling regret after a performance.
But at her feet, puddles of blood were spreading.
The rebels were already dead.
“Well then, shall we go listen to the next performance?”
Saying this, Celia elegantly walked out of the blood-soaked underground room.
Behind her, soldiers followed, carrying the corpses.
***
The Sail Empire’s large-scale sweep operation began.
It was undeniably a good opportunity for Empress Irena.
Since the Celia, with whom she had a contract, was personally stepping in to stamp out the rebellion, there was no reason to refuse.
A ruler must not show weakness to their nobles.
Empress Irena had learned firsthand how tragic and pathetic it was for royal authority to be weak since she was a princess.
Naturally, even after the Sail Kingdom became the Sail Empire and the King became the Emperor, her thoughts remained unchanged.
‘Imperial authority must become even stronger.’
To achieve that, she was willing to show an even more resolute side than before.
That is why Irena gave Celia further support.
As a result, Irena’s reputation gradually shifted to that of the ‘Iron Empress.’
Meanwhile, some powers were concerned about the Sail Empire’s actions.
These were all the countries except for the Sail Empire.
***
The Grand Cathedral of the White Church was filled with grandeur and authority.
Major powers of the El Dorado Continent gathered in this prestigious space.
Envoys from the Orbis Empire, Kalrn Empire, and Adonil Kingdom were seated around the table in their respective positions, and Priest Uriel attended on behalf of the White Church.
“It is quite unusual for representatives from so many countries to gather today.”
Count Markov, who attended as part of the delegation from the Orbis Empire, spoke.
“We can no longer ignore the impact of the Sail Empire’s recent actions on the entire El Dorado Continent.”
Duke Dorian of the Kalrn Empire, stroking his beard, said in response to Count Markov’s words.
“Our Kalrn Empire shares the same opinion as Count Markov. Queen Irena. No, the executions and oppressions carried out by Empress Irena under the pretext of ‘crushing rebellion’ have reached a point where we, as neighboring countries, cannot overlook them.”
Duke Dorian continued his explanation.
“Furthermore, the Orbis Empire and our Kalrn Empire are adjacent to the Sail Empire.”
In reality, the Kalrn Empire had a mountain range separating it from the Sail Empire, but that was not very important.
Everyone knew what would happen if the now-larger Sail Empire turned its blade towards other countries, and they simply nodded in agreement.
After his words, young special envoy Eliott of the Adonil Kingdom spoke with a worried voice.
“That’s right. If the Sail Empire, which has completely annexed the Free City Alliance, continues its expansionist policy, we might be next.”
His voice held undeniable fear.
The Adonil Kingdom was the weakest among the three countries and was most sensitive to the Sail Empire’s expansion.
Of course, the Duchy of Belus, the smallest country in the El Dorado Continent, existed, but the Duchy of Belus was a vassal of the Kalrn Empire.
Therefore, there were no envoys from the Duchy of Belus present at this meeting.
Although the Adonil Kingdom was some distance from the Sail Empire, the situation could change if the Orbis Empire opened the way, making them particularly sensitive to this meeting.
Count Markov of the Orbis Empire nodded solemnly.
“Our concerns are all the same. However, direct military intervention would only worsen the situation. That is why we are meeting with the Priest today.”
They were not fools.
What was the reason the Sail Empire had taken over the Free City Alliance in the first place?
Was it not because there was a group of warlocks in the Free City Alliance, and the White Church approved the then-Sail Kingdom’s war to suppress them?
In essence, the White Church was the greatest contributor to the current existence of the Sail Empire.
Moreover, they couldn’t protest to the White Church.
The White Church’s actions were solely aimed at dealing with warlocks, and harboring resentment for this would put them at risk of being labeled heretics.
Therefore, the envoys gathered here were subtly criticizing the Sail Empire, not openly attacking the White Church.
Count Markov continued in a calm voice.
“The original objective was to eradicate the warlocks within the Free City Alliance and for the Sail Kingdom to maintain peace. However, even though that objective has been achieved, the Sail Kingdom has instead swallowed its territory and declared itself an Empire.”
He carefully chose his words and cast a look of respect towards Priest Uriel.
“Priest, the White Church’s initial intention was to remove the threat of dark magic, not to permanently transfer a country’s territory to another nation.”
A heavy silence fell upon the room.
Priest Uriel listened to all these words calmly. Count Markov spoke again.
“We earnestly request that the White Church act as a mediator. Since the warlocks have already been dealt with, we believe that the territory of the Free City Alliance should now be returned to its original owners.”
The true intentions of those gathered here were revealed.
