Chapter 153: Deon Hart, the Betrayer of Humanity

I secured the authority to command directly from the Demon King.

I even volunteered for the paperwork.

Perhaps because things had been going so well lately, the Demon King readily accepted Dan.

[Since he’s a human you brought yourself, he’ll be useful somewhere.]

Having received permission was enough. Whether it was something material or mental— I ignored the mumbling that followed.

I also requested an investigation into the Duke. Knowing the situation, the Demon King himself took charge of the investigation.

And me?

“If the commander-in-chief is seen as a joke, command and control won’t function properly.”

In the past, I had the luxury of thinking that if problems arose, I could just escape to the Human Realm, but now, I don’t have a second option.

So, I thought.

“I mustn’t appear weak.”

Being seen as weak means death.

The demons view my physical durability and combat prowess as separate. Since there were indeed demons like that, they accepted it more easily. That’s why they’ve been so cautious around me despite seeing me cough up blood and show other signs of weakness.

But now that I’ve completely sided with the Demon King and am engaged in battles, what if they see me facing combat every day?

“Demons might be a bit slow, but they aren’t stupid.”

They’ll probably realize. That Deon Hart isn’t as strong in combat as they thought.

If this fact gets out, the consequences are obvious.

I’ll plummet to the bottom of the demon hierarchy, and the commander-in-chief position I barely obtained will become meaningless. It was clear that the demons would show no mercy to a ‘human’ of lower rank.

The reason I’ve been able to stay at the top of the demon ranks so far isn’t just because of the Demon King’s protection, but because I’ve been recognized as strong.

“So, keep battles to a minimum.”

Even if I do fight, it shouldn’t drag on. Keep it short. I need to act as brutally as possible to shift the atmosphere in my favor and instill fear even in my own allies.

So they can’t analyze me. So they can’t even think of making foolish moves.

“Since I can’t display overwhelming force, I’ll have to show overwhelming fear.”

Demons who are suppressed by force and who establish their hierarchy through force will naturally assume that the reason for fear is also ‘force’.

“I shouldn’t build friendships with demons either.”

Affection and fear are opposing forces. When faced with fear, affection diminishes, and when fear decreases, building affection becomes easier. Also, if affection is strongly built, even when faced with fear, the fear might disappear….

For me, affection with demons is poison.

“Let’s build an unapproachable image.”

Fortunately, my image was already one that people couldn’t easily approach, so there’s no problem.

“I used to receive unintended misunderstandings and assumptions.”

Now it’s my turn to do it intentionally.

Doing things the way I did before isn’t enough. I need to be unignorable and build even higher walls than before. All these actions are ultimately aimed at preventing them from doubting my strength.

“Those who are accustomed to being at the top wouldn’t even think of doubting their position.”

Coincidentally, Deon Hart thought of one person in that context.

“Stigma Primiero.”

The time has come to use what I learned from him.

***

Winter passed in an instant.

So many things had happened by the time the snow melted and the grass began to sprout.

It wasn’t a long time, but the events that unfolded were so absurd that Paul stared blankly at the newly budding trees outside the window with a bewildered expression.

“The most recent ridiculous news… was that Deon Hart had sided with the Demon King.”

At first, he thought it was just a baseless rumor.

The thing was, Deon Hart was a hero so loyal to the Emperor that he was called ‘the Emperor’s dog.’ Even the Emperor cherished him greatly, so who would dare to imagine his betrayal?

“But it was true.”

As soon as this news broke, the death of the fourth hero, Cruel Hart, was also announced as if on cue. The added detail was that Deon Hart was the last person seen with him.

People finally pieced together the circumstances and fell into shock.

[Deon Hart killed Cruel Hart.]

[To be precise, he killed him and fled to the Demon Realm.]

No one doubted it.

Deon Hart loathed Cruel Hart so much. He openly displayed his hostility without any intention of hiding it, so everyone knew about Deon Hart’s hatred for Cruel Hart.

“The timing of the announcement is too coincidental to not be suspicious… but let’s move on for now.”

The continent was thrown into turmoil by this news.

A betrayer of heavenly duty who even killed his last blood relative. A betrayer of humanity who turned his back on the Human Realm and sided with the Demon Realm.

It was a truly heinous crime.

Almost everyone was in shock. The majority couldn’t contain their anger at his crime, and some even shouted that his inhuman appearance was fitting for a minion of the Demon King. Rumors filled with all sorts of malice, claiming he was on the Demon King’s side from the beginning, surfaced but soon lost credibility and faded away.

As a result, Deon Hart became everyone’s enemy.

“And another major event….”

Click. At the sound of the door opening, he removed his chin from his hand and looked up.

Mr. Iram, one of Daniel hyung’s staunch supporters, entered, pressing his tired eyes.

Paul smiled weakly and waved his hand.

“You’re here?”

“Yeah, I’m a bit tired.”

“Hmm… you must have been fighting with the executives again. I thought they’d be more cooperative by now.”

“Cooperation? The newcomers are trying to assert their dominance to secure their future share, and the remaining ones are trying to protect their own interests. How can there be any cooperation?”

Besides, I’m not the official leader, just the acting leader’s representative—

He awkwardly laughed and pretended not to hear the subtle barb in the undertone.

“I thought hyung had cleaned up all the trash, but I guess not.”

“If I tried to get rid of all the trash, not half, but 90% would be gone. Then it would be difficult to maintain the Revolutionary Army itself, so we have to compromise. Still, Daniel taking care of the really nasty pieces of trash made it bearable.”

“That’s a relief.”

“…More importantly.”

This time, Iram’s eyes held a sharp glint as he stared at Paul.

Paul couldn’t possibly misunderstand the meaning in his gaze, and just as he was about to try to evade it, direct words were thrown at him, as if to permit no further dodging.

“Paul, Daniel named you as his successor.”

“…I know.”

Paul paused before a faint smile touched his lips.

…Another major event was the death of Daniel, the founding leader of the Revolutionary Army.

Yes, Daniel was dead.

Even in death, he didn’t die without purpose. He noticed the Duke’s betrayal and used himself and a portion of the Revolutionary Army as bait to strike back, completely severing the connection between the Revolutionary Army and the Duke.

Thanks to that, the Revolutionary Army’s leash, which had been tied since their alliance with the Duke, was finally released.

As soon as this news spread, Paul moved swiftly to make Daniel and the trash who died with him into heroes.

“If I hadn’t acted first, the other executives would have surely pointed out hyung’s poor judgment in sacrificing half of the Revolutionary Army’s forces and tried to make the ‘Paul as the 2nd leader’ matter disappear.”

They wouldn’t dare to disparage the Revolutionary Army’s heroes.

It was unpleasant that the trash were being revered as heroes, but he liked that hyung had become a hero.

Paul, who had admirably upheld Daniel’s will and his position, smiled faintly at Iram, who was struggling to manage the Revolutionary Army, which was already showing signs of division, and to contend with the executives who were pressuring him not to leave the leader’s seat vacant for too long.

“I’ll officially take the position tomorrow. But please, give me today off.”

“The situation is chaotic….”

“I’ll be busy from now on, and there’s someone I want to see one last time while I have the chance.”

It wasn’t difficult to guess who that person was.

Iram rubbed his forehead.

“Daniel and you are really….”

The student was just like his teacher.

Why do they have to be alike in such unnecessary ways?

“…I won’t stop you, but you’re an important figure now, so take some guards with you.”

“Yes.”

***

After the Salvation Church collapsed, Sia returned to her life in the slums.

A life hanging by a thread. Whether she would die today or tomorrow. Even as she made a pointless bet with herself, salvation would miraculously arrive just when she was about to die, and she desperately clung to life.

If she went hungry for too long, food would appear; if she got sick, medicine would be provided.

The human desire for survival is truly tenacious, and even she, who had no will to live, eventually had no choice but to reach out for the suspicious salvation.

And.

Today, too, there were eyes watching the child who was listlessly burying her face in her knees from afar.

‘She doesn’t seem to be sick, she seems to have eaten something, and most importantly, she’s alive….’

He didn’t know if you could call that being safe, but he was relieved that she was alive and well.

I won’t be able to come often in the future, so I need to see her as much as I can now.

His mouth tasted bitter. He wished Sia could live with purpose, but Paul had no right to push her. He had already led her down the path of destruction with the Salvation Church.

“She’s okay, that’s enough. Let’s go back.”

After Paul left, having stood there for a long time watching the child, someone appeared before Sia.

──.

A one-sided statement was made. Sia, who had been motionless, flinched and looked up, as if something had caught her interest.

“…Demon Church?”

A child who had been ensnared by a pseudo-religion and hadn’t yet escaped showed interest in a new religion.

***

“…Demon Church?”

Some pseudo-religion that worships demons?

The Duke smirked at the wickedness implied by the name.

“When the tiger is away, the fox plays king… Now that the Salvation Church has quieted down, unheard-of pseudo-religions are running rampant….”

……

“We can’t lose. Aggressively increase the number of Salvation Church members.”

We must let them know that the tiger is still alive.

The tiger is clearly alive, only pretending to be dead and lying low for a while. How dare a fox try to play king in the tiger’s territory?

‘A religion that worships demons in this situation….’

The mastermind is obvious. It’s got to be the Demon Realm.

The corner of his lips curled up in an asymmetrical smile.

“Let’s have a proper religious war.”

Let’s see who can attract more followers.

Even as he said this, the Duke was confident of victory.

How many humans would go to a religion with an ominous name? Especially when the opposing religion has the name ‘Salvation’ and had done good deeds in the past. People’s hearts would naturally lean towards the latter.

That’s why the Duke could wear a relaxed smile.

***

The Duke overlooked something.

In the eyes of the commoners, the Salvation Church had already failed once.

Even if the tiger is alive, if its claws and teeth are all gone and it’s barely clinging to life, how can they acknowledge its territory? It would be better to attach themselves to a vigorous fox that is digging into its territory and claiming it as its own.

A religion that has already collapsed once might very well collapse a second time. What the commoners wanted was a religion they could rely on, and the Salvation Church no longer fit the bill.

Compared to that, the Demon Church?

[The name itself sounds strong.]

[It won’t collapse easily.]

[They distribute food like the Salvation Church too.]

In the first place, the ‘Demon Church’ isn’t a fox. If forced to compare it, it would be an animal they’ve never seen before, whose identity is unknown.

Because its identity is unknown, they don’t know its power. Is it stronger than a tiger? More trustworthy? What is its temperament like? They know nothing, so they are rather hopeful and have reason to expect.

[Then there’s no need to hesitate.]

Most of those who missed the good memories of the Salvation Church and those who had completely abandoned religion aside, the majority headed to the Demon Church.

Contrary to the Duke’s expectation of an overwhelming victory, the situation was neck and neck.

***

“Lirinel, you don’t even participate in the war, why do you look so busy?”

“I’m busy with Demon Church matters, so get lost, you ignorant and ugly Commander of the 9th Corps! You’re not even a member of the Demon Church!”

…….