Chapter 155: Deon Hart, the Betrayer of Humanity

There’s no reason to refuse. I wasn’t even considering it in the first place.

No matter how mighty the Empire is, it has its limits when facing the Demon Realm alone. The king of Sanguo knows this, which is why he can be so assertive.

The Emperor quietly stroked the back of his hand.

He knew that the king of Sanguo had anticipated the power struggle after the alliance and had prepared in advance, now using it to his advantage.

‘A bit of a shame.’

If Sanguo hadn’t had the card of being a vassal state, or even if they had it but didn’t know how to use it, instead focusing on the synergy between Rweche and the Empire, they could have reduced Sanguo’s say in the upcoming alliance.

Sensing his opponent’s intellect, the Emperor lowered his gaze, thinking he would be quite tired in the future, but then paused, noticing something. The king of Sanguo, perhaps mistaking his hesitation, added,

“Our top priority is the Demon Realm, after all.”

“…Indeed.”

It wasn’t because of that, but it was certainly a question he had been holding back, unable to ask directly.

If the Demon Realm’s claims were true, this war was happening because of the Empire. Was he truly alright with that? Even if not, the Empire had been waging wars of conquest until now. Did he truly have no feelings about it?

He had been swallowing the words, knowing they could become a weakness if spoken carelessly, but it seemed the king of Sanguo already knew.

‘This much is acceptable.’

It might put them at a slight disadvantage in future alliances, but the Empire wasn’t so weak as to be intimidated by just that.

That wasn’t why he paused in the first place. A silent smirk spread faintly across the Emperor’s face.

‘He must have removed the curse through a sorcerer.’

Was it because the war was ongoing? The hallucinations had become worse.

But not now. Pretending not to see anything, he lifted his head, met the gazes of the two kings, and slowly nodded.

“I have heard your opinions well.”

“Then…”

“Isn’t this a war between the Demon Realm and the Human Realm? I gladly accept.”

***

When the news that Deon Hart had sided with the Demon Realm spread throughout the Human Realm, who suffered the most?

Deon Hart?

How could anyone inflict harm on someone who wasn’t in the Human Realm?

The people’s misplaced rage at the betrayer of humanity. Too immense to simply swallow, their fury was directed at the Killer Knights, who were obediently awaiting orders from the Emperor.

Thwack!

“Damn it, yeah! Before we kill the demons, let’s start by killing you bastards!”

“Do you think we’re pushovers?! Huh? Do you think we’re pushovers?!”

“We’re living like there’s no tomorrow anyway! We’ll take you down with us!”

“His Majesty… ah, whatever! We’ll just say we’re doing the work of two knight orders!”

“Guys, take your meds!”

Whack! Crunch!

They were waiting obediently… though, considering they hadn’t killed anyone despite the discrimination and insults, it was somewhat commendable.

Furthermore, even though they were provoked by the harsh insults directed at Deon Hart, enough to make them shout, ‘Don’t insult our captain,’ they wisely kept those words to themselves, as if they had learned a thing or two surviving on the battlefield for so long.

That was why the Emperor tolerated the Killer Knights’ behavior to some extent.

“Even that has its limits now.”

One of the Killer Knights members, huddled in a secluded corner, spoke up.

“We did cause a bit of trouble, didn’t we?”

“Rumor has it the Emperor is planning to put us on the front lines soon. We might end up fighting our captain.”

“How did you get that information?”

“The head butler told me.”

“What is it with the head butler…?”

The head butler’s voice, chuckling about the lunatics who had been showing up at the Marquis’s household with torches, echoed in the knights’ minds.

They hadn’t met him in person, communicating through the communicator he had secretly provided, so they hadn’t seen his face… but they had heard a heavy dragging sound, hadn’t they? Like the sound of dragging a human corpse…

“The head butler would know about that.”

“Yeah, head butler for the win.”

“Honestly, nothing the head butler does would surprise me.”

The fact that he readily handed over a valuable communicator, from who-knows-where, wasn’t surprising anymore.

The Killer Knights members returned to their initial topic.

“Now that we know where the captain is… let’s bolt.”

“Where to?”

“Where else?”

The Demon Realm.

…A member was about to say it but quickly shut his mouth, a chilling sensation running down his spine.

The others seemed to feel the same, quickly covering each other’s mouths, holding their breath. Their instincts, as keen as those of wild animals, were accurate.

“I’ve always wondered how far you’d go, but I’ll probably die of frustration before seeing the end. To boldly declare your escape from my territory.”

Thud. A footstep filled with pressure.

His short green hair swayed with his stride. Brown eyes, devoid of warmth, held a sneer as they fixed on the Killer Knights.

Stigma Primiero, the Empire’s second hero, temporarily in charge of the Killer Knights by the Emperor’s command, muttered in a chilling tone.

“If it weren’t for my junior’s knight order, I would have killed you hundreds of times over.”

Not just tens, but hundreds.

The blatant murderous intent made the Killer Knights flinch, whimpering. Milan, the least timid of the bunch, barely lifted his head, trying to lighten the mood with a playful tone.

“Marquis Primiero, what brings you here? Are you here for another round of ‘education’?”

“Didn’t I say I gave up on educating you? You’re the first ones to provoke my anger this much since I was a child. I almost died of frustration that day.”

“Weren’t we the ones almost dying? You drew your sword that day…”

Bang!

“Who in the world could instill manners in you lot?”

Silence.

“I tried to teach you for my junior’s sake, but what can I do when your very foundation is rotten? I’ve decided to simply think of you as my junior’s pet dogs, not a knight order.”

“Did he just call us pet dogs…?”

“Did I use such vulgar language?”

Thud. Stone dust fell from the wall Stigma had leaned against.

A quick glance revealed a dent in the wall….

“No, sir!”

Even mad dogs have a sense of survival. The knights shook their heads frantically.

Ever since the Emperor, overwhelmed by the daily antics of the Killer Knights, had handed them over to Stigma, they had been forcibly experiencing his terror.

Despite Deon Hart being labeled a traitor to humanity, he still referred to them as ‘my junior’s knight order’ and accepted them as such. He even thought it was a good opportunity to teach manners to his junior’s stray dog-like knights, entrusting their education to his knight order’s captain and vice-captain. The atmosphere was good, up until then.

Both of them declared defeat on the first day, and Stigma, feeling puzzled, decided to educate them himself.

He willingly stood before the Killer Knights for their education, and soon after….

[Which ear is it that doesn’t listen to people?]

He drew his sword.

[You just seem to be in the way. I don’t think you need them. Shall I cut them off for you?]

[Eeeek!]

[Stay still, or you might lose your neck instead of your ears.]

He was clearly serious. His eyes were wild.

Anyway, after that commotion, Stigma also declared defeat. It was a large enough disturbance that it was surprising there were no casualties, and even the brazen Killer Knights flinched and trembled at the mere sight of Stigma’s shadow for a while.

Silence.

Stigma sighed, looking at the trembling knights.

“You can’t run away from me. Even if you’re a knight order that even His Majesty struggles to control, I’ve been ordered to take charge of you. What will happen to my reputation if you escape?”

Knight Kleter suddenly raised his head.

It wasn’t because of ‘His Majesty’s order’ that he couldn’t let them escape, but because of his ‘reputation’?

That meant….

“I’ll speak to His Majesty to transfer your affiliation. I’m not sure where you’ll go, but it should be possible to transfer you. He’ll understand if I say I’m about to die of frustration.”

We can hear you, you’re being too much.

“My junior is the officially recognized traitor, you aren’t criminals yet, so if you’re transferred, the surveillance won’t be as strict as when escorting a criminal. The accompanying forces will also be relatively small.”

Of course, this was compared to criminals.

They weren’t official criminals, just being treated as potential ones, so there wouldn’t be no surveillance at all. But that level shouldn’t be a problem for them to shake off and escape.

“In that case….”

“If you desert then, my reputation won’t be too tarnished. You’ll already be out of my hands. Anyone else would have faced the same situation.”

Of course, the nobles who were waiting for him to show a weakness would seize the opportunity to attack.

But he could defend against that much. If his reputation could be damaged by something like that, it was as good as non-existent in the first place.

Stigma lightly curved his lips into a smile.

“So, just wait a little longer. You don’t need to worry about me trying to stop you. I’m just as eager to get you out of my sight.”

“Y-you’re being too harsh with your words….”

“What was that?”

“Nothing, sir!”

***

Click-clack, click-clack—

The cube turned roughly in Deon Hart’s hands. He sat in the seat directly below the Demon King, a sullen expression on his face as he rotated the cube.

Contrary to his calm expression, his insides were quite twisted.

‘The results are less than expected.’

According to the plan, they should have taken down at least one imperial fortress by now.

Even though the Demon King had issued a ban on magic, he thought the demons’ innate physical abilities would allow them to break through easily.

‘Damn it.’

He lacked information about the demons. Just because he had spent some time in the Demon Realm didn’t mean he knew everything about them. He had been arrogant. He should have thoroughly gathered information about his allies before making the plan.

Whether it was frustration at his own incompetence or frustration born from impatience, his nerves were on edge.

He feared he might lash out unfairly during the upcoming meeting, so Deon frowned and rubbed his lips before closing his eyes.

The Demon King glanced at him, pretending not to notice, and naturally shifted his gaze to survey the conference room.

“It seems all the demons are here… Then let’s begin. Idelia, you said you had new information about the Human Realm?”

Idelia, the commander of the 4th Corps, nodded.

“Yes. The key kingdoms of the Human Realm have formed an alliance: the Empire, Rweche, and Sanguo. Esperance is the only one excluded, but it’s a very small and isolated kingdom, so it’s as good as all the humans being united.”

“…Finally.”

Someone muttered lowly.

Their calm voice, devoid of surprise or shock, revealed a sense of resignation, as if what was coming had finally arrived.

“Considering what the current Empire has done, it’s a bit unexpected….”

It wasn’t entirely unforeseen news.

In fact, it could be said that it was later than expected.

The demons, with expressions that indicated ‘it’s finally here,’ loosened their tense bodies, some crossing their arms, others leaning back in their chairs.

“Then, regarding countermeasures….”

“…Countermeasures?”

Click, the hand turning the cube stopped.

Bang!

The completed cube was slammed roughly onto the desk. The relaxed tension tightened again, and the gazes of all the demons focused on one point.

“What countermeasures are there to discuss?”

The white-haired man’s red eyes gleamed sharply.

“We’re going to wipe them all out anyway.”

“…Hahaha!”

The Demon King, meeting the red eyes staring straight at him, burst into cheerful laughter.

Ever since being asked to thoroughly destroy the Empire, Deon Hart had been expressing his dissatisfaction in this way from time to time.

Unlike before, when he would offer his resignation and lament his fate, he now subtly scoffed, expressing his discontent with the occupation of the Human Realm.

‘It’s understandable, though.’