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Chapter 252 - Know Your Place (1)

In the long history of his ancestors on the throne, this was an unprecedented situation. Something like this hadn’t happened during the reigns of his grandfather and father, but it happened just now.

“This can’t be...”

A myriad of thoughts raced through Herarion’s mind. However, no matter how he looked at it, he couldn’t explain why Janus was ignoring his sacrifice.

Herarion was so panicked that his garments were soaked in sweat.

To this, Herarion took out the Black Ring, Janus\'s token of proof, from his pocket. He then pressed it to his chest and got ready to pray. He was trying to feel the divine power course through his body, ultimately to check if the token of proof still retained Janus’ Grace.

And after a while, Herarion murmured in disbelief, “No... This can’t be happening...”

Clang-

Roll, roll...

Herarion turned ghastly pale. His arms fell limp to his sides, dropping the ring, which proceeded to roll across the floor. Any priest would’ve been appalled by this, since royal treasures, like Janus’ token, were considered more valuable than life itself.

However, the Black Ring no longer held any significance. Herrarion couldn’t feel any divine power in Janus’ token, the item which was considered the divine treasure of the royal family. At this, Herarion muttered to himself like a madman, “Janus... Janus disappeared?”

This wasn’t Herarion’s assumption or some kind of theory. It was the stark reality he had just confirmed with the power of La.

***

Given that he had finally succeeded in making Elagon evolve, thus strengthening his army, Henry planned to focus on his primary goals once again, which were to dispose of Arthus and completely wipe out the Chimera army in Charlotte Heights.

To get back on track, Henry called in all of those who had pledged to help him achieve his goal. He had called them to the top floor of the Snow Spire. Even though he had regained control of the empire and the imperial palace, Henry opted for the Snow Spire because he didn’t want to discuss strategy in Arthus’ former dwellings.

Gathered around a large round table was Henry, the Archmages, the knights who were allied with him, the mercenaries of Faesiling who had joined their side after the Battle of Zipan, the warriors of St. Hall, and the commanders of the Allied Forces.

Along with them, Von, McDowell, Valhald, Hector, and Ronan were also in the room. However, instead of taking their usual seats around the round table, they stood behind Henry. Just by the way they were standing, even a stranger could tell that they were his royal guards. There was also a sixth knight who stood tall, his posture straight, along with the other members.

He was none other than Balak.

“Haha, you never cease to amaze me. You own the Punishment King,” McDowell chuckled, breaking the silence.

Even though McDowell knew that Balak had sided with Henry, this was the first time they were in the same room since their fight. However, despite McDowell’s ridiculing comment, Balak remained unfazed, looking straight ahead and standing still like a statue.

Looking at the Punishment King, Hela, the Iron and Blood Empress, chimed in, “Ha... I think I made a mistake with our deal, Henry. If I had known there would be so many great men, I wouldn’t have shaken hands with just you.”

Henry could tell that Hela was being serious, since the women of Amaris aspired to bear the daughters of strong men.

Allen, seated across from her, took the chance to throw in a joke.

“Empress, then what about me?”

“Hmm?”

Hela glanced at Allen, but then...

“Quiet, Allen,” urged Masila in a low but serious voice. She pinched his shoulder from behind him to stop him from engaging in such crude jokes with the empress.

Seeing how Masila reacted, Hela smirked and responded, “Hehe, you’re the Mercenary King, aren’t you? Men like you are also my type... But that pussy cat guarding you is so spiteful.”

At this, Masila glared at Hela, and the empress smiled at her, finding her furious gaze rather cute. Despite the strange tension, the atmosphere was overall amicable on the top floor of the Snow Spire because everyone had gained what they wanted by learning what kind of man Arthus was through the illusion Henry and Viram had come up with together.

As everyone at the table settled down, Henry started the meeting.

“We will now start the meeting on how to take care of Arthus and his Chimera army.”

In reality, there wasn’t much to talk about. They already knew where the Chimeras were located thanks to Skall, and even if they went ahead and formed an army, it would be just a small group of elite people. This was also the reason why Henry focused on strengthening his forces, rather than reorganizing the army.

Henry then went ahead and brought everyone up to date, and once he was done explaining, Allen raised his hand and asked, “Archmage, should we then leave for Charlotte Heights immediately after this?”

Allen went straight to the point, and Henry did the same, replying, “I believe we can wipe them out if they’re still there.”

“Then how about we get moving right away? Can’t we get there instantly with the help of the wizard folks here?”

Allen had already seen what Henry was capable of in the war, and since they were now on the same team, he could just ask Henry to teleport him.

Henry nodded at Allen and replied, “You’re absolutely right. In fact, I was planning to do exactly that, which is why I have everyone gathered here.”

“Alright. Then it’s settled. Everyone grab your stuff so we can get going.”

McDowell, who had been silently listening to Henry and Allen, concluded the meeting himself in the most straightforward manner possible.

Henry nodded in agreement and said, “Sounds great. We’ll teleport from the first floor of the tower. In the meantime, please finish your preparations. We’ll leave for Charlotte Heights in exactly one hour.”

Knowing that the teleportation gates to each country were on the first floor, Henry decided to give everyone an hour for their final preparations. As soon as he was done talking, everyone got up from their seats and started to prepare.

The top floor had become empty in an instant, but there was still one person who hadn’t left their seat.

It was Herarion. His expression was grave, suggesting that something was bothering him. Henry noticed this and called out, “Your Majesty Herarion.”

“Ah, Archmage...”

“Only the strongest of the strong will participate in this battle, both on our side and on Arthus’ side. There will be no regular soldiers, so if you feel pressured or burdened, you don’t have to take part in this.”

Henry wasn’t looking down on Herarion; he was merely reassuring him that he cared about his well-being. He also knew that Herarion wasn’t as strong as Benedict had been.

Hearing this, Herarion responded with an awkward smile, “I appreciate your concern, but I can defend myself just fine. And Archmage, this might be the last battle, so I believe we should be together for this historic event.” His eyes gleamed with determination.

With a nod, Henry replied, “I understand, but don\'t push yourself too hard. Of course, I will assist you, but...”

“Thank you, but...”

“Yes?”

“I have something to tell you.”

“Something to tell me, you say...? Is it something important?

“It’s extremely important to me, but... Nevermind, I shouldn’t burden you with something trivial right before we go into battle. We can talk about this after we finish off Arthus and his Chimeras.”

“Now I’m curious about what you have to say, but... I understand. I’ll listen to what you have to say after everything is over.”

“Thank you.”

Herarion hadn’t been able to bring up his concerns to Henry, and knowing that he couldn’t do anything at the moment, he left the room. Henry felt rather uneasy for a second, but he decided to let it go because he had to focus on the imminent full-scale battle, which could very well be the last.

Once Henry made sure that Herarion had left, he summoned Skall once again to check the location of the Chimera army one last time to set up their destination.

As his eyes gleamed with determination, Henry thought to himself, ‘They’re still in Charlotte Heights. I’ll defeat them all today and put an end to all of this.’

As Henry’s mind was racing, Skall suddenly interrupted.

-By the way, Henry. You’re not trying to get this information for free this time too... right?

“You damn...!”

-Okay...

After Skall finished his job, he went back to the other world.

***

Harz received a letter from the imperial palace of the Aenia Empire, sealed by Henry himself. Henry had sent the missive after reclaiming the imperial throne, telling Harz to lift up the state of alert and restore normalcy to daily life.

Harz was elated at this news because it meant he could go back to his old days when he didn’t have to work. He could live out the rest of his life comfortably.

Without delay, Harz informed Harris that the imperial throne had been recaptured, ordering him to decrease the alert levels in the city. To Harris, this order translated into the end of the war. The news traveled down the hierarchy, from Harris to the lower officials and then to the city troops guarding the castle walls.

“Drop your guards!”

“Lift the barrier!”

This was undoubtedly good news for them. While the war had provided an opportunity for the free city to become an independent state, the financial strain of maintaining their forces came at a high cost. However, they no longer had to worry about that.

The war was over, and since Henry had firm control of the imperial throne, people expected there to be absolute peace under his name for a long time, unless he died or had a sudden change of heart.

‘We should first decrease the number of city troops.’

Harz wasn\'t the only one excited by this change. Harris, who had been managing Enkelmann on Harz’s behalf, was pleased with the fact that they could save up some of their budget. This also applied to Vivaldi and Monsieur.

Everyone believed that an era of peace was emerging on the horizon, so those who had been anxious due to the war were finally calming down.

The tension that had frozen the continent was finally thawing. The streets were once again filled up by a jolly atmosphere.

“Did you hear the news? I’ve heard that all soldiers are going to get paid leave to commemorate the end of the war.”

“Paid vacation! Is that really true?”

“I heard the other countries have already started... The war did end sooner than I thought, but I’m really glad.”

“I agree. Since we know what’s waiting for us, how about we go for drinks today?”

“Yeah, what are we waiting for?”

The soldiers\' fatigue and anxiety melted away like snow on a sunny day. With the alert levels lifted, the military reduced the number of troops on duty and encouraged them to rest. Consequently, the castle gates, which had been closed for a while, were finally open again.

People who had been stuck within the confines of the city because of the war were once again free to venture outside. With this, merchants could get back to their primary businesses.

Four soldiers had been stationed in front of the gate as usual, managing the entry and exit of people.

“I’m on the first shift! The first shift is always the best!”

“I want to go home as soon as possible after I’m done here. I\'m so tired now...”

“Who wants to get some drinks with me later?”

“Me!”

“Great!”

The soldiers on duty at the gate were all in a good mood. It was clear that their morale had risen back up.

Just then, a soldier pointed out, “Hmm? Hey, look over there. Someone’s already making their way here?”

“Huh, yeah, there’s someone coming...”

The soldiers pointed at a hooded figure approaching from afar, which sparked their curiosity. It was rather strange to already have a visitor just minutes before opening the castle gates.

“I guess news does travel really fast. It seems like they’ve been waiting for the gates to open, don’t you think so?”

“No, that can’t be. Must be a coincidence. Want to make a bet? Let’s guess where that person has come from.”

“Okay, then the person who loses the bet gets off work later and buys a drink.”

“Okay.”

In order to kill time, soldiers sometimes made friendly bets, like guessing the hometown of visitors, since their identity tags showed where they were from.

However, before these soldiers knew it, the hooded person was already in front of their gate. They were short, around one hundred and fifty centimeters tall. Judging by their slim figure, they seemed to be a young girl.

Then one of the soldiers politely requested, “Could you please show me your identity tag?”

In response to the soldier\'s question, the hooded visitor raised their head, revealing a ghastly face that sent shivers down the soldiers’ spines. Shocked and speechless, the soldier stammered, and the visitor, noticing his fear, grinned and opened their mouth all the way to their ears, something that a normal person would definitely not be able to do.

“Ru-run...!”

The soldier closest to the terrifying figure quickly came back to his senses and was about to scream like anyone else would, but...

“Oh, no, no... You shouldn’t do that.”

Whoosh!

Numerous tentacles shot forth from the figure’s face and pierced right through the soldier’s neck.