Chapter 170: Chapter 1: The Method to Contract with the Demon King

1: Leaving the book that detailed the method to contract with the Demon King, he spoke.

2: [I offer a trade, with this book as the stake.]

3: …….

4: ***

5: The Duke’s heart sank upon hearing the news of Paras territory’s fall.

6: The Duke was a politician; tactics were outside his purview. If even private soldiers remained, he could lend a hand, but even they were lost to the Revolutionary Army. All that remained for him was to wage a public opinion war using the Salvation Church.

7: His pride was inevitably wounded.

8: ‘Though, there is magic, in fact….’

9: If the Demon King’s semi-contractor were to use the magic he granted against the Demon King’s army, would the Demon King simply stand idly by?

10: ‘He might withdraw the power.’

11: He wasn’t certain the Demon King could take it back, but he also couldn’t be certain he couldn’t.

12: Moreover, there was no guarantee how much he could accomplish with this magic. It would be better to conserve it, then unleash it all at once at the opportune moment for a decisive blow.

13: Therefore, the Duke decided to save his magic for the very end.

14: ‘So, I need to find another card to play.’

15: He needed another card. Something like absolute power to control everything, to hold everything in his hands.

16: It wasn’t that the Duke was speechless and unable to participate in the war on the chessboard; if given pieces, he was confident he could play better than anyone.

17: ‘Of course, losing the pieces I already held is inexcusable….’

18: He clenched his fist tightly.

19: ……The same mistake would never happen again. The Duke had paid dearly for his arrogance and carelessness.

20: If only the Emperor would yield a little.

21: ‘So stubborn.’

22: He slightly frowned.

23: In his heart, he wanted to forcibly seize power, but the current situation wouldn’t allow such actions. It would only escalate the chaos, breed resentment, and cause internal strife.

24: ‘Foolish.’

25: He couldn’t understand it.

26: Here was someone who welcomed power. A man so madly in love with power that he would risk anything for it. The country was already precarious; why stubbornly refuse someone willing to take responsibility and get their hands dirty instead of going mad?

27: He watched the Emperor frequently rub his fingertips and clench and unclench his fist. The gesture, as if shaking off something persistently clinging to him, allowed the Duke to infer the scene visible only to the Emperor’s eyes.

28: ‘He must be seeing blood on his hands.’

29: The level of hallucination had surpassed sight and hearing, and now even touch was realized. Then, perhaps even smell was also being realized.

30: Thinking about it again, the Emperor was the wrong person for the times. At least in this era.

31: If he had ascended in a peaceful era through peaceful means, he might have become a wise ruler. But he wasn’t. The Emperor needed now was someone who could sacrifice the few for the sake of the many without hesitation, someone shameless enough not to feel guilt while doing so.

32: Yes, someone like himself.

33: The Duke curled up one corner of his lips.

34: “Whether it’s hyung or dongsaeng, all of you are weak and yet stubbornly headstrong.”

35: Long ago, Eudoardo Deserte, when he was still the 9th Prince, recalled the 1st Prince he had encountered.

36: The man who had stubbornly secured his place as heir amidst numerous succession contenders, only to be poisoned and given a death sentence.

37: ‘He was so weak-willed, it was questionable how he even solidified his position as heir.’

38: The reason he desperately participated in the succession battle was to protect his family, or so it was said.

39: If any of his other brothers ascended the throne, not only he and his most beloved brother, but even his children would surely be killed. He seemed to have realized this fact acutely upon losing his wife.

40: What was so important about some family? The word ‘family,’ so wishy-washy and lukewarm, didn’t suit the Duke. That was why he hid in the shadows and ridiculed these radiant types of people.

41: So he administered poison.

42: He wanted to extinguish that light, to administer poison that slowly gnawed away at his life.

43: What the Duke needed was not the unyielding 1st Prince, but other heirs who would become mere puppets, so he acted without hesitation.

44: Then, the terminally ill 1st Prince came to find him.

45: ***

46: “I have a book that might interest you, Duke.”

47: A titleless book was placed on the desk. The Duke glanced down to confirm the book, then looked back at the 1st Prince.

48: It was a completely unexpected opening. To come to the person who poisoned him and say something like this. Could it be that the man before him was unaware that he was the culprit behind the poisoning?

49: The question was brief. If he played along, the main point would emerge. The Duke opened his mouth for now.

50: “What is this?”

51: “It’s a forbidden text describing the method to contract with the Demon King.”

52: “……!”

53: Madman.

54: Had becoming terminally ill made him truly blind to consequences? What kind of madman would even think of taking this outside?

55: But separately from that, it was true that it piqued his interest.

56: “A dangerous item indeed. What is your reason for showing this to me?”

57: “I offer a trade, with this book as the stake.”

58: “A trade, you say….”

59: Now he understood. He intended to demand the antidote in exchange for this book. Perhaps, in addition to the antidote, he might also demand ‘Illuster’s’ support to solidify his position as heir.

60: The Duke, his tension eased, relaxed his posture slightly.

61: ……Still, he should verify just in case.

62: “What could you possibly take from me that you would request a trade like this?”

63: “The condition is to protect my children… Aletea and Elpidius, and… Eudoardo.”

64: “…….”

65: It was an answer that completely deviated from his expectations.

66: The Duke momentarily lost his words and blinked.

67: ……Foolish. A ridiculously foolish condition. Did he really not know who the poisoner was? The 1st Prince, who ultimately reached the top in the succession struggle, truly didn’t know?

68: “You must be wondering why I’m not demanding the antidote, knowing that you poisoned me.”

69: “……!”

70: “I already know your ambition, Duke. I know your greed won’t end there. Even if I obtain the antidote through this trade and ascend to the throne, I won’t be able to control you, who will have contracted with the Demon King and gained power.”

71: He would be dragged down by the Duke, and all the family members he was protecting would be killed by the Duke’s hand. The 1st Prince smiled bitterly.

72: He had many thoughts.

73: Could he perhaps offer something else besides this book as a condition? Did he have any other tempting offerings in his possession that the Duke would accept?

74: ‘Not only are there no such offerings, but even if the Duke hadn’t contracted with the Demon King, I wouldn’t have the confidence to control him.’

75: The Duke was not an easy opponent.

76: So, he changed his train of thought. If he were to use this book in a trade, what conditions should he propose?

77: ‘What I want is the safety of my children and… my life.’

78: ‘What the Duke wants is power.’

79: No matter how he thought about it, there was no way to get both. Even if he found out the method to contract with the Demon King, if the condition was to block the opportunity to gain power, the Duke would refuse. In the first place, he couldn’t propose too many conditions.

80: Therefore, to propose conditions that would balance on the scales enough for the Duke to accept….

81: The 1st Prince cleanly gave up his own life.

82: “Whatever conditions I set, if I survive and ascend to the throne, I will be wearing a leash.”

83: He would become a king constantly anxious about being dragged down, always watching the Duke’s every move.

84: “I have no intention of giving you a leash, Duke.”

85: “……Are you saying you’re giving up on your own life?”

86: “If you must put it that way, then yes.”

87: Golden sunlight streamed down upon the 1st Prince as he said that and smiled.

88: He was clearly emaciated and had dark circles under his eyes from the poison gnawing at his life, yet he was too dazzling.

89: “……I cannot understand.”

90: The Duke furrowed his brow.

91: He truly couldn’t understand. Even with death looming, the man before him was shining brightly.

92: ……He felt a little irritated.

93: “Haven’t you considered the possibility that I might not accept the trade? Since you’re going to die anyway, haven’t you considered the possibility that I might just wait for you to die or simply kill you on your way back today and take the book?”

94: “If the trade is not accepted in this place, I intend to burn this book immediately. And before coming here, I told several people that I was coming to meet you. Furthermore, I’ve arranged for evidence to spread immediately upon my death, whenever and wherever it occurs, that you are the culprit.”

95: “…….”

96: “Is it so hard to believe I could fabricate a piece of evidence?”

97: In other words, even if the trade wasn’t concluded and he died, whether it be assassination, or even just unlucky enough to be attacked by bandits on the way back, the Duke would be the culprit.

98: “If I report that Your Highness arbitrarily took out a forbidden text….”

99: “I said I would burn this book immediately if the trade isn’t accepted. Naturally, when the investigation comes, this book will no longer exist. Of course, the empty record in the library has already been taken care of since I took it out. You will become a noble who falsely accused the 1st Prince.”

100: “……Whether I accept the trade or not, it seems I am at a loss.”

101: Even if he accepted the trade, the condition didn’t include the 1st Prince’s life. The harm he would suffer from the death of the 1st Prince, who didn’t receive the antidote, would not disappear.

102: The 1st Prince smiled gently.

103: “Of course, if you accept the trade, I will change the culprit of my death to Duke Gradis.”

104: “……Ha.”

105: There were two dukedoms in the kingdom.

106: Duke Gradis and Duke Illuster. Because they were in a relationship of mutual containment, it was only natural that Duke Gradis would be an eyesore to Duke Illuster, who already had a desire for power.

107: “Now that I see it, this was a threat.”

108: “It’s a request.”

109: “……Very well. I accept the trade.”

110: ***

111: After that, as if waiting for it, the 1st Prince called a sorcerer and made a contract.

112: He had ridiculed the sight of him clinging to his family as weak. How could he have known that a family man with much to protect could be this frightening. For the Duke, who was born into a loveless family and thoroughly educated to aim only for the top, it was no different from being checkmated.

113: [Let me restate the conditions. It’s simple. Protect my children, Aletea Deserte and Elpidius Deserth, and Eudoardo Deserte. However, protection includes not only their lives but also their free will.]

114: […….]

115: [I added the condition because I thought you might simply lock them up somewhere and say, ‘I protected them,’ and it seems I was right to do so. You must respect the children’s free will.]

116: [……Even if your children and the 9th Prince try to kill me, should I simply consider it their free will and respect it?]

117: [You, Duke, should be able to protect yourself without harming them. To protect them, you must be alive, so that moment would be an exception, but you must not harm the children.]

118: Just listening to the explanation made the Duke frown.

119: The thought of having to do that for the rest of his life already made him feel tired. Just as he was thinking of nullifying the contract, the 1st Prince spoke.

120: [The term is 10 years.]

121: [……?]

122: [All of these contracts will be terminated after 10 years.]

123: From the 1st Prince’s perspective, it was a losing proposition. Why bother?

124: The 1st Prince, not missing the question that was plainly visible on his face, smiled gently.

125: [After 10 years, I will leave it to the children and you, Duke.]

126: […….]

127: [10 years is enough time for the children to become strong enough, and enough time for you to become attached as well. They are lovely children. Especially Edi… Eudoardo, you can’t help but love him. Even though he is one of the brothers I must contain, not my own child, I have come to love him.]