As soon as he stepped outside, the gazes of several people converged on him. They were the Duke Knights standing guard, and their eyes were steeped in deep bewilderment. Their expressions, as they stood awkwardly and stared at Theodore, were the very picture of embarrassment. Pretending not to notice, Theodore approached them.
“You’ve been working hard.”
At his greeting, the Duke Knights simultaneously snapped to attention.
“We greet the Archon.”
The order Duke Pherstein had given them moments ago resurfaced in their minds.
—I have decided to join hands with Archon Theodore. Therefore, from this moment onward, you are never to behave discourteously toward him. Show him the same respect you show me. Is that understood?—
It was an order that was difficult to comprehend. For nearly ten years, Theodore had interfered with the duke’s plans, and the Duke Knights had regarded him almost as an archenemy. Until now, not a single knight had ever paid his respects to Archon Theodore. But since it was the duke’s command, they had no choice but to obey. Even so, there was no helping the slight displeasure that showed on the faces of the Duke Knights as they saluted. Theodore, who had somehow noticed it, smiled faintly.
“Then carry on with your duties.”
“Yes, sir. Have a safe journey.”
Theodore leisurely walked between the Duke Knights, who bowed deeply to him. Damon, too, passed by while grinning broadly and looking over their faces.
‘Heh heh heh. Their expressions are really something to see.’
After leaving the detached palace, Theodore headed straight for the imperial palace. The imperial palace of the Crossen Empire was surrounded and guarded by several detached palaces, and within it lived Valensius I, who was in a vegetative state, and Crown Prince Dvious, the leading heir to the throne.
Around the imperial palace, countless guards were keeping watch with their eyes wide open. It appeared that security had been tightened another notch because of the dragon attack that had taken place not long ago. Theodore and Damon walked straight toward the main gate of the imperial palace. The guarding knights tensed up the moment they saw Damon and saluted.
“We pay our respects to His Highness the Crown Prince.”
But when they saw Theodore following behind him, the knight who appeared to be their leader froze on the spot. As fate would have it, he was none other than Casimov, vice commander of the Crossen Knights. He had been the first to discover Theodore’s treason, and, as ill luck would have it, he had been assigned to guard the palace that day…
Judging by the way he kept tilting his head as though unable to understand the situation, he seemed to have already received some sort of hint from Duke Pherstein. Just as Theodore had expected, Vice Commander Casimov was inwardly shouting that this was a damned troublesome situation.
‘What the hell is going on here? A moment ago, Duke Pherstein passed through claiming that all of the charges against the archon were based on a misunderstanding, and now I have to watch the archon walking along amicably with His Highness Crown Prince Alcaris. This is enough to make one think ghosts are at work.’
In principle, he should have arrested Archon Theodore. But considering the circumstances, it seemed wiser to wait a little. Duke Pherstein had already entered to meet Marquis Williams.
—Archon Theodore will soon come to meet Marquis Williams to clear up the misunderstanding.—
Having heard those words from Duke Pherstein, Casimov did not dare arrest him. Moreover, the crown prince was accompanying Theodore in such a friendly manner, leaving Casimov with no choice. After much deliberation, he eventually allowed them to pass.
“Please enter. The knight commander is waiting for you.”
“You’ve been working hard.”
Theodore nodded and moved between the rows of spears and swords. Damon passed by as well, flashing Casimov an inscrutable smile.
Once inside the imperial palace, they walked down a long, lavishly decorated corridor. Guards stood at attention throughout the passage, spears and swords raised as they devoted themselves to their duties. The moment they saw Damon, they assumed rigid postures.
“We pay our respects to His Highness the Crown Prince.”
After walking for quite some time, accepting each of their greetings in turn, they finally arrived at their destination. When they reached a fork in the corridor, Theodore stopped.
“We shall have to part ways here. I will proceed directly along this path to meet Commander Williams. Therefore…”
Looking around, Theodore noticed a guard nearby and changed the way he addressed Damon.
“Your Highness, please go and meet Your Highness Dviers, your younger brother. You may enter through the door ahead.”
At Theodore’s sudden change in attitude, Damon immediately began acting as well.
“Understood. I cannot express the gratitude surging from the depths of my heart for your efforts.”
Theodore gave a wry smile at Damon’s pompous reply.
‘He really is an entertaining man.’
As Damon strode away, Theodore quickly erased his thoughts and bent deeply at the waist.
“Then have a safe journey, Your Highness.”
When he raised his head again, he saw the guards courteously ushering Damon inside. Theodore watched for a moment before turning away. His mind was filled with thoughts of how he could persuade the stubborn Marquis Williams.
Clunk.
The heavy door opened, and Damon stepped inside. A long hallway stretched before him, with a large door visible at the far end. The second prince of the Crossen Empire, Dviers, was probably waiting for his brother in that room. As Damon slowly walked down the corridor, a troubled expression passed across his face.
‘Damn it. How am I supposed to sweet-talk this Dviers fellow? From what Theodore said, he sounds like a real headache. What a lunatic. He’s actually thinking of abandoning the greater cause over some mere woman…’
Damon had never even seen the young man’s face before, yet because he was inhabiting his brother’s body, he now had to treat him as his younger brother. The thought left Damon so troubled he felt he could go mad. If not for Theodore, Damon would never have accepted such a request. In the end, he decided to keep things simple.
“I’ll have no choice but to deal with him the same way I dealt with that fellow Mitchell. If things go wrong, I’ll just beat some sense into him without mercy…”
As he drew near, the knights standing by the door all saluted him.
“We greet His Highness Alcaris, the First Prince.”
Damon waved his hand indifferently.
“That’s enough. Open the door.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
The knights immediately opened the door. Damon strode quickly through the opening.
Crown Prince Dviers had been staring blankly out the window. When the door opened, he turned his head, and upon seeing his brother, his face lit up with joy. Without a moment’s hesitation, he hurried toward him.
“You’ve come, Brother.”
“Ahem, ahem. Yes, I have.”
Damon was deliberately clearing his throat while wondering what he should say when an unexpected incident occurred. Dviers suddenly flung his arms around him and hugged him tightly.
“I’ve missed you so much, Brother.”
“L-Let go of me. You rascal, this is improper…”
Startled, Damon tried to push Dviers away without hesitation. But as he struggled, his body suddenly stiffened. He had felt a hot sensation against his shoulder.
Astonishingly, Dviers was crying. Hot tears flowed down and continued to soak the area around Damon’s shoulder.
“I was truly lonely, Brother. Why have you only come now? It was too hard for me to bear the pressure weighing down on my shoulders all by myself.”
‘Th-This fellow…’
Damon could not help feeling bewildered by his behavior. Thinking that he should calm him down first, Damon lightly patted Dviers on the back.
“Yes. Your brother is here. Now stop crying. Do you understand?”
Despite this, Dviers did not stop crying. It seemed that, upon meeting someone he could rely on, all the resentment he had kept bottled up until now had come surging out at once.
“How could you do this, Brother? How could you leave after placing every burden on your younger brother? Now that you’ve returned, take the burden back.”
Dviers continued to pour out his grievances. Damon listened silently, recalling what he had heard from Duke Pherstein. Dviers had been raised in complete isolation from an early age, and thus knew little about his elder brother. After coming of age, he had never once even seen his brother face-to-face.
Damon let out a long sigh.
‘The lives of royalty are just as miserable here as they are in the Central Plains.’
Realizing that he needed to take a forceful approach, Damon abruptly shoved Dviers away.
“B-Brother.”
Looking down at Dviers’s tear-streaked face, Damon hardened his expression.
“You pathetic fool.”
“……….”
“Are you truly so weak-hearted despite being a grown man?”
“B-Brother.”
Dviers looked up at Damon in astonishment. But Damon’s gaze did not waver in the slightest.
“Before long, you will become the emperor of this vast empire. How can someone in your position show such weakness?”
“No. I have no desire whatsoever to become emperor. Now that you have returned, Brother, I…”
“Enough!”
Damon shouted and seized Dviers by the collar. His voice, sharp as a drawn blade, poured down upon Dviers. He had already neatly arranged a strategy in his mind for winning Dviers over.
“Seven years ago, I left this place with absolute faith in you. I did so with the sole purpose of making you a great emperor. And you dare behave like this?”
Dviers’s eyes widened.
“W-What do you mean…?”
“I will not waste words. You must ascend the throne of Crossen. I have no intention of allowing the hardships I endured over the past seven years to become completely meaningless.”
“……….”
“While growing up, you must have heard many times that I was a simpleton. Is that not so?”
“I-I heard it many times as a child. Of course, I did not take it at face value. But seeing how perfectly sound you are now, I feel extremely fortunate that I never believed it.”
Damon’s mind was working busily as he sought to persuade Dviers.
“I acted that way solely to deceive that man named Pherstein. At the time, I was in a position from which I could not escape his clutches. You know that well, do you not?”
A sudden fury blazed in Dviers’s eyes.
“As you know, that man is the sworn enemy of our family. It is merely bitterly frustrating that we lack the power to eliminate him.”
“I understand how you feel. I want to kill him as well. But that is no longer necessary. His mind is already under the control of my black magic…”
“What? What do you mean?”
A bewildered expression appeared on Dviers’s face. Damon gazed into it with a solemn look.
“I have already formed a contract with the Demon King. To be precise, I allowed a black magician who had contracted with the Demon King to possess my body. Do you remember the black magician who fought against the red dragon Verkis yesterday?”
Dviers silently nodded. Having witnessed most of the battle, there was no way he could have failed to see the black magician. Had it not been for that black magician, Dviers would not have survived the moment of mortal peril. Damon continued speaking.
“You alone must know this truth. The black magician at that time was me. More precisely, the black magician possessed my body and fought the dragon. But during the final moment, the dragon’s mental magic caused the black magician’s soul to vanish. All that remains now is my soul and the dark mana he left behind. Do you understand?”
“H-How could such a thing happen…?”
Dviers stood with his mouth agape in astonishment. He had never even imagined that his elder brother Alcaris, whom he had never met, could have undergone such an ordeal.
“Although the black magician’s soul vanished, the dark mana he left behind still exists within my body. I used it to successfully beguile Duke Pherstein. In other words, I manipulated his mind and awakened within him an unbearable hatred toward the dragons of Trubenia. Duke Pherstein is no longer concerned with becoming emperor of the Crossen Empire. His sole interest is crossing over to Trubenia and fighting the dragons. Do you understand?”
“……….”
Dviers could not bring himself to speak. The path his brother had walked was simply too wretched. And the fact that Duke Pherstein, whom he had always regarded as an insurmountable wall, had been beguiled by his brother’s black magic… That too was difficult to believe.
Damon’s voice continued to reach Dviers’s ears.
“War with Trubenia will break out before long. The rise or fall of Arcadia will likely be decided through that conflict. I intend to take part in the war. Therefore, you must take the throne of the Crossen Empire.”
At those words, Dviers shook his head as though it were impossible.
“You cannot. You must be rewarded for having lived through such hardship, Brother. I will take part in that war in your place. So you should ascend the throne.”
“That is out of the question. The bone dragon and death knights that once served the black magician are, in the present circumstances, an immense military force. I intend to deploy them in the invasion of Trubenia. To do that, I must personally go to the battlefield.”
“……….”
“There is another reason you must become emperor. Within my body coils the dark mana bestowed upon me by the Demon King. In other words, I may transform into the Demon King’s incarnation at any moment. Do you think someone like me could dare sit upon the throne of the Crossen Empire? It would be utterly preposterous. Therefore, you alone are qualified to become emperor. Do you understand?”
A multitude of emotions crossed Dviers’s face as he stared intently into Damon’s eyes. He had intended to hand the throne to his brother by any means necessary, but after learning the whole truth, he could no longer continue to insist.