Chapter 66: Declaration of War

The doors swung fully open, and as I stepped inside, the opulent interior seized my attention.

‘You can tell it’s the Empire, alright.’

The magnificent and extravagant interior was so overwhelming that I might have risked letting my gaze wander away from the Emperor himself, but I quickly shook my head, dismissing the thought.

Who would dare look away in his presence? The sheer pressure emanating from the man seated at the head of this hall was palpable even here.

Eudoardo Deserte. The undisputed and unrivaled Emperor of this land.

Perhaps it was the formality of the occasion, but he exuded an even more unapproachable aura. There he was.

Lost in thought for a moment, Cruel beside me began to walk. Not wanting to fall behind, I snapped out of my daze and hurried after him towards the Emperor.

We didn’t walk far before we both stopped, Cruel and I speaking in unison.

“Glory to the Empire.”

‘Glory’ during wartime, ‘Glory’ during peacetime.

“Your Imperial Majesty, I am your subject, Cruel Hart.”

“Your Imperial Majesty, I am your subject, Deon Hart.”

The rest was the same.

As we stood there respectfully, the Emperor’s voice echoed above us.

Perhaps it was just my imagination, but his tone didn’t sound as pleased as it should have, considering he was about to offer praise. If anything…

“Raise your heads.”

Ah, so it wasn’t just my imagination. Just look at his face. That’s not a happy face. There’s a furrow in his brow.

‘Why? Is it because of me? Did I do something wrong?’

Come to think of it, I had been acting rather questionably lately.

I let those people brainwashed by that pseudo-religion go, and despite all the commotion, I didn’t even manage to bring back a single piece of paperwork…

It seemed he’d realized I wasn’t exactly a valuable asset. I discreetly glanced around.

‘Considering Cruel and I are the only ones here, it doesn’t seem like he intends to reprimand me officially…’

Does that mean I still have a chance?

First, I’ll try my best to beg for forgiveness. If that doesn’t work, I’ll consider making a run for it.

Attacking the Emperor was, of course, out of the question.

Not only would I never be able to defeat those who protect him, but I also didn’t want to fight General Nemesius.

And more importantly…

‘The Emperor is a hero who possesses a fragment of the Hero’s power.’

How else could the seemingly powerless 9th Prince have killed everyone and ascended the throne? How else could he have become the universally acknowledged Emperor just eight years after his coronation?

Through overwhelming force.

He possessed the largest fragment of the Hero’s power among all the heroes who had appeared. The exact size of the fragment was unknown, but everyone believed it to be so.

After all, no other hero had ever displayed the same level of martial prowess as the Emperor.

There was no way I could kill him. I’m barely a threat to the average person.

‘Just beg.’

Who knows? Maybe he’ll spare me out of pity for our past association.

No, no. When it comes to the Emperor, my usefulness as a ‘spy’ is far more likely to save me than any notion of ‘pity.’ I’m the only human who can stay by the Demon King’s side.

While my mind was occupied with these thoughts, the Emperor’s commendation continued.

After the formalities, he finally got to the point.

“Deon Hart, Honorary Count, has shown leniency by simply letting go of commoners enthralled by a pseudo-religion. However, his proactive actions opened a path to capture the culprits. Cruel Hart, while the specifics of his actions remain unknown, successfully identified the masterminds and brought forth the evidence.”

Was it my imagination, or was there a subtle emphasis on the words ‘while the specifics of his actions remain unknown’?

The Emperor’s expression darkened further as he continued.

“My heart desires to grant a wish to both of you for your efforts, but as there is only one wish to be bestowed, a choice must be made. Therefore, after careful consideration, I have decided to favor Cruel Hart, whose contribution was more decisive.”

“Your Majesty, you are too gracious.”

Tch. Just as I thought.

I couldn’t exactly shout, ‘That bastard burned the documents!’

The only saving grace was that the Emperor didn’t seem to think the documents were destroyed because of the fire I started.

Perhaps he did suspect it, but as long as he didn’t voice it, it wouldn’t be used against me. I’ll take what I can get.

“So, what is your wish?”

His voice was lower than usual.

Cruel bowed deeply once more and replied calmly.

“I humbly request that you grant me the Hart territory currently held by Honorary Count Deon Hart.”

…What?

“…Honorary Count Hart, what are your thoughts on this?”

Wait a minute. Hart territory is my land!

Sure, I complained and threw tantrums about not wanting it and even went to the Emperor to argue…!

But to have it taken away like this felt awful. This was practically a transfer of territory without the owner’s consent.

I whipped my head around to face the Emperor. My eyes met his unwavering gaze.

‘Ah.’

There was no choice. Refusing here would only damage my reputation. Whatever I said, he could easily counter with, ‘But you said you didn’t want it anyway.’

The Emperor knew this, and that’s why he asked for my opinion, pretending to give me a choice.

“…The territory was already a burden. I am grateful.”

I gritted my teeth, glaring at Cruel. He must have felt my gaze, but he didn’t turn his head.

The Emperor couldn’t have missed my discomfort. Feigning ignorance, he lightly tapped the armrest, drawing attention back to himself, and spoke.

“Before we transfer ownership of Hart territory to Cruel Hart, there’s a matter to resolve. A title is required to possess land.”

A jolt went through both Cruel and me.

‘…Huh? Why is he reacting like that?’

I could understand my own apprehension at the thought of that guy getting a title, but why was Cruel so surprised?

“As I’ve said before, Cruel Hart, has your opinion changed?”

“…I have no desire to inherit the Hart family, nor do I wish to change my surname.”

“…!”

Ah, I understood what he meant. I had refused the Emperor’s offer for the same reason.

The direct reason why I remained merely an ‘Honorary Count’.

When I first met the Emperor after the eight-year war, he praised my contributions and offered his support for me to become the head of the Hart family.

Not the current, insignificant Honorary Count title, but the head of the ‘real’ Hart County with its long history.

Any other second son might have been tempted. But back then, I loathed the Hart family so much that even hearing its name made me shudder.

There was no way I would take a position within that hated family.

When I flatly refused, the Emperor then suggested other titles. A basic countship, or even a marquisate if the Emperor put in a little more effort.

It wasn’t a bad offer.

‘If it didn’t require me to abandon the ‘Hart’ name, I would have accepted it in a heartbeat.’

I could create a new surname, or the Emperor could bestow one upon me.

However, I was told that since the ‘Hart County’ already existed, a different title with the same surname couldn’t be created. So, I cleanly gave up on the idea of a title.

What the Emperor grudgingly granted me was the ‘Honorary Count’ title.

An Honorary Count title was a single-generation title, meaning it would naturally expire upon my death. This prevented the possibility of two ‘Hart’ families causing confusion later on.

Originally, the Emperor wanted to grant me the title of Honorary Marquis, but historically, ‘honorary’ titles only went up to count, and the Emperor, already dealing with numerous post-war disputes with his officials, had no choice but to concede.

‘So, Cruel received a similar offer.’

It made sense. He was a ‘hero’ now, after all.

Thinking about it, Cruel Hart was the only official hero in the Empire without a title.

If I didn’t want to abandon the Hart name because I wanted to hold onto my anger and desire for revenge, was his reason nostalgia?

Or perhaps his reason was also revenge. Revenge against me for killing his family before his eyes.

I could understand why he would refuse to become the head of the Hart family.

It probably pained him.

“This is troublesome. The Honorary Count title is already held by someone with the same surname. However, I cannot grant him the title of Honorary Marquis without him achieving greater merit. Nor can I bestow a mere Honorary Baron or Viscount title upon a hero.”

That’s a lie. You just don’t want to give it to him.

Even so, having a title was better than having none. The noble faction had raised this issue several times, but the Emperor had ignored them every time.

He probably didn’t want to give the Duke more leverage.

Oddly, the Duke hadn’t been very proactive about this issue, which was why it could be easily dismissed…

The Emperor, looking displeased, addressed Cruel, who was silently awaiting his next words.

“I shall transfer the ownership of Hart territory to Duke Illuster. What do you say to that?”

You are the Duke’s subordinate, and if you wish it, the Duke will readily appoint you as the territory’s administrator.

I could almost hear his unspoken thoughts.

After a moment of silence, Cruel slowly lowered his head.

“…I am grateful for Your Majesty’s consideration.”

“Then it’s settled. Honorary Count Hart, you may stay. The rest of you, leave.”

Cruel glanced at me before departing, seemingly unconcerned by my wide-eyed stare.

That damn bastard. What is he plotting?

No, more importantly…

‘…Why did you ask me to stay, Your Majesty? This is scary.’

Is this finally it?

The moment he realized I wasn’t a capable asset.

I pushed the issue of Hart territory to the back of my mind for now. Right now, I needed to figure out how to appease the Emperor’s anger.

I took a quiet breath and slowly closed my eyes.

***

Those brothers are stubborn as mules. Refusing to inherit the Hart County even on their deathbeds…

Do they even know that the Count’s family, now without a proper heir, is on the verge of collapse? Distant relatives, practically strangers, are gathering, clamoring to be the new masters.

Then again, they must know. They just don’t care.

The Emperor sighed inwardly, his gaze fixed on Deon Hart, who remained alone.

‘He doesn’t look pleased.’

It must be because he lost Hart territory.

There was no point in mentioning it and stirring up trouble, so Emperor Eudoardo smoothly transitioned to another topic.

A topic so impactful that Hart territory would be instantly forgotten.

“There will be a meeting immediately after this audience, so you’ll find out soon enough, but I’ll tell you now. I intend to wage war.”

“…!”

He seemed quite surprised. Understandably so, considering it had only been two years since the end of the last war.

The Emperor smirked, meeting Deon’s fully revealed red eyes.

“The suppression of the Salvation Church ended at a very opportune moment. And the Ireon Kingdom has been barking incessantly lately.”

“You intend to wage war… against the Ireon Kingdom?”

“That will be the start.”

The start.

The end will be the unification of the continent.

Deon’s expression darkened, clearly recalling the agonizing eight-year war.

However, he wasn’t so heartless as to send the injured to war. Ah, right. It was simply that he didn’t want to lose valuable personnel so carelessly.

If his intention was merely to announce war preparations, he could have done so at the meeting later. Why go through the trouble of meeting separately?

“I want to entrust the Demon Realm to you.”

Conquering the continent itself wasn’t a major concern, but the Demon Realm was a nuisance.

There was no way the Demon King would simply watch the Empire devour the continent without intervening.

In that regard, Deon Hart was incredibly valuable.

He was a hero of the Empire and a commander in the Demon King’s army. The only human who could stand by the Demon King’s side and had earned his trust.

“From the Demon King’s side, do everything you can to prevent the Demon King’s army from interfering in this war.”

“…I understand your command.”

“I will take charge of the Lofty Knights until you return. Leaving them at your mansion might lead to the destruction of even the Count’s Estate someday.”

“……”

“And…”

Autumn was approaching, but it was still summer, and his gaze lingered on the exposed collarbone visible through the light clothing.

More precisely, on the black brand just above his collarbone.

[Curse of the Demon King.]

He mulled over the phrase in his mind, a wry smile forming involuntarily, before reaching out his hand.

“…I hope to see you next time without this.”