As foretold, the Doom Man, one of the Demon Kings, appeared to usher in the night. Despite being regarded as a mere legend and only ranking fifth among the six demons recorded by Saint Cassian, he was indeed the devil that had been spoken of.

Saint Cassian’s record was true. Doom Man’s army invaded both time and space, then captured the Franklin Dukedom in just a few days. Their corps was different from the Baclans, Declans, Barbas, and Grafs as they were under the direct control of the Demon King.

Hence, the group was now known as the Demon Corps, and they had now arrived in the Land of Whirlpool within the Xyliver Kingdom. King Lymax, the ruler of the kingdom, was currently having an audience with a woman of low status who had returned alive from the Land of Whirlpool. Despite her status, the king spoke with the utmost respect and chose his words carefully out of deference to Caldoran’s honor.

“Are you sure Duke Caldoran has passed away?”

The Holy Knight family was in control of the Land of Whirlpool as previous kings in accordance with the old tradition. According to her, Caldoran was killed there like his ancestors.

Nonetheless, the answer came from a young man kneeling from behind instead of the woman as she had stayed silent.

“That’s what the aristocrats in the city decided, Your Highness.”

He was an illegitimate child, but he had still inherited his father’s sword prowess. Anger and bitterness permeated his speech as he mentioned the city’s nobles.

Upon hearing of the tragedy that had befallen the city, King Lymax signaled his servants in the presence of the woman of low status. She had barely managed to stay in the city thanks to her son, who couldn’t even register his name under his father’s family list even though he had outstanding talents. Thanks to her son, she had been able to survive this time as well.

After the maids helped the woman to walk outside the room, King Lymax said earnestly, “I can’t believe this.”

Caldoran was one of the Holy Knights who had attained the rare rank of Sword Master due to his exceptional combat abilities. Moreover, King Lymax had been informed that his long-time acquaintance, King Onyx, would help him out.

Two Sword Masters had confronted the Demon Corps on the Land of Whirlpool.

“I heard this directly from Your Highness’s guardian knight.”

He was referring to Caldoran’s legitimate child.

The king said, “Tell me more.”

“My father left for the field with King Onyx, accompanied by his guardian knights.”

“Instead of waiting for reinforcements?” King Lymax asked.

The boy shook his head. “The Demon Corps was too strong to do that, Your Highness. We had no choice but to move to the field before the city collapsed.”

“I heard there were fewer than one hundred soldiers.”

The memory of that moment left Leo speechless, and a deep sense of terror sent shivers down his spine. It was so intense that it overshadowed even the loss of his highly esteemed father. His eyes filled with dread as terror surged through him. Images of sacred priests battling and succumbing to the deadly mist of the plague, and of over a thousand malevolent spirits taking form, flashed through his mind.

Leo closed his eyes tightly and opened them. Then, he recounted the events from the all-night battle to when Caldoran’s rightful heir returned to the field and shared his experiences. The story of the young warrior unfolded, detailing the point at which the city’s aristocrats surrendered to the Demon King, and concluding with the slaughter of Leo’s family members.

“There’s a reason why we ran to you by avoiding the Demon Corps-occupied areas. It’s not because we have forgotten our desire for revenge. Actually, I want to stay in the city like your guardian knight.”

“But?”

“My father once told me the secret about the family.”

Caldoran had cherished Leo. King Lymax wondered if it was due to the Holy Knight recognizing Leo’s lineage. Given that Caldoran had entrusted Leo with the family secret, it seemed likely to be the case.

Although it was just an honorary position, he would have offered his legitimate kid as King Lymax’s guardian knight. Thus, Caldoran must have intended for Leo to inherit the family. Within the Holy Knight family, the foremost concern was identifying kids who would carry on the Holy Knight bloodline, so there was no preference given to legitimate or illegitimate children, nor any distinction made between gender.

King Lymax viewed Leo in a new light with these considerations in mind. Ultimately, the situation was quite dire as Caldoran had passed away, and his family was on the brink of extinction. King Lymax knew it was possible to gain control of the Holy Knight bloodline, which had consistently contained Sword Masters, by channeling the young warrior’s fury and desire for vengeance against the city’s nobles and the devil.

“I don’t care about the secret. My fury burns for the loss of Caldoran and the suffering you have endured! The corrupt nobility of the city is even more detestable. To honor Caldoran’s spirit, I have no recourse but to deploy my troops and bring their heads to the chopping block.”

“If you do so, then I will dedicate my sword to you, Your Highness.”

King Lymax sensed a weird sensation in Leo’s response.

“I’m going to provide you with my soldiers, too.”

“...Thank you for just saying that.”

Leo’s voice trembled as he suppressed the anger.

“Why?”

“I need to take some time to fulfill my father’s will.”

“Do you have any plans?”

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“No, but I want to go north.”

“King Gemilan?”

“He is one of the two in my mind.”

“The north is too distant, and it will pose a greater challenge with your mother in tow.”

King Lymax attempted to convince him, but Leo remained resolute in his stance.

***

King Lymax mused over the secret of Caldoran’s family that Leo, the son of Caldoran’s concubine, had told him.

There were two reasons why Caldoran and his forebears had safeguarded the Land of Whirlpool by assuming the role of its protectors. One was tied to the imminent arrival of the Demon King, which had unfortunately come to pass despite their efforts. The other was related to the Book of Death, which was a black magic tome from the War of New Devil. It was a dangerous dark magic that should never be revealed to the world, let alone to the Barba Corps that harbored necromancers according to Saint Cassian’s record.

Did Caldoran have such a thing…

King Lymax was furious with Caldoran, and his ire extended to Caldoran’s child, who had departed despite Lymax’s repeated attempts at reconciliation.

Black magic was bound to be a vicious curse. A land overrun by black magic was notorious for its legendary yet nightmarish tales. Most of these stories were recounted by elderly sailors who had been tossed about by the winds and waves, only to find themselves upon the death-ridden continent.

They spoke of encountering the living dead, inescapable situations upon being bitten, and even bodies that appeared to wield mana, with walking skeletons banding together as a squad. The other stories were similar to these.

Even if it was a curse, Caldoran was supposed to use such black magic to prevent the Demon King from entering this world. That was why Lymax was mad at the dead Caldoran. Caldoran ended up choosing his reputation over the crisis of the kingdom. Or he might have believed that he would be able to stop the Demon from coming even without such a curse.

Anyway, the Demon King had arrived, and he overpowered the entire Land of Whirlpool. Everything happened within Lymax’s kingdom, not somewhere else.

When Lymax was lost in thought, the Minister of Court came in a hurry.

“How did it go?” he asked.

The minister grimaced. “It’s not good. It has become more difficult to expect assistance from other kingdoms.”

“Are they under attack as well?”

The man shook his head. “It’s not like that. They said things aren’t urgent enough to dispatch troops, and the unusual activity in the south has caught their attention.”

He was referring to Azadun, the Sword of Desert, which was one of the most powerful kingdoms on the continent known as the ‘South.’

“Your Highness. It seems that Azadun has started to move north.”

It was a distant country considered to be a part of another continent, separated by a strait acting as a boundary. One would only become aware of its existence through the products it produced, but its name was not supposed to be mentioned in the current conversation.

However, Lymax understood why Azadun went to the war of conquest. They were trying to expand their military territory before facing the Demon Corps.

“What about the Atreus Kingdom?” Lymax mentioned the name of another great power. The northward expansion of Azadun was a matter for the southern kingdoms directly confronting them, and Lymax’s focus ought to be on the Atreus Kingdom.

If the Atreus Kingdom began to try conquering neighboring territories, then they would not only be forced to contend with the Demon Corps within, but also face off against Atreus’s soldiers outside, given the shared border.

“Your Highness. King Atreus sent an envoy.”

King Lymax sardonically remarked, “It’s obvious that I don’t have to look into it. He must be telling me to crawl between his crotch.”

“...”

“You should know better, but your family has a strong grudge against Atresus’s prestigious families. The same goes for our royal family. King Atreues will not recognize the rights of the empire as they are. Am I wrong?”

“But, Your Highness…The Demon King has already penetrated too deep into our kingdom.”

“It’s not just them. Even the incarnation of the Demon King has descended. The future of our kingdom is clearly bleak. However, you and I know that things won’t end even if we sacrifice our fortune to Atreus. I would rather surrender to the Demon than hand our kingdom over to Atreus. The Demon might recognize us as what we are now, right?”

The minister protested, “Your Highness! Our Lord Lacryma is listening to us.”

The king snorted. “The Lord’s punishment is not something that I should fear. Rather, those who refused my aid out of cowardice, and those like Atreus who have used the current situation as a pretext for starting a war, ought to be the ones concerned. What do you think?”

“If you are saying that we should surrender to the Demon… We should consider after watching more of what is going on in the city of Caldoran.”

“Do you truly believe that we would simply surrender to the Demon? Although the Land of Whirlpool is within my realm, Caldoran was responsible for it. He may have fallen, but you and I have yet to even begin. Let me be clear about my intentions. I desire to retake Caldoran’s city and drive the Demon out of our borders. If the Cabinet has a different approach in mind, I shall respect their decision.”

“Your Highness… Our wills are the same as yours, but…” the minister hesitated.

The king looked at him. “But?”

“The Land of Whirlpool is where two Sword Masters, Caldoran and King Onyx, were killed.”

“You must be thinking of the same name that I am. I want to hire the King of Mercenaries. His royal wealth alone is not enough, so he desperately needs the support of you and other ministers.”

“However… He is a man of endless greed. You know what catastrophe many kingdoms faced when they invited him and his corps.”

King Lymax sighed. “Regardless of the outcome, both you and I would have to grovel at Atreus’s feet. I have made my intentions clear, and as I previously stated, I shall honor whatever decision the Cabinet makes. I hope that you, too, will respect my wishes.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Lymax added after much consideration, “Tell only those you trust. There is the Book of Death in the city of Caldoran. There is no doubt that I had heard this from his son. If we can secure it, then we will be able to regain more than we will lose to the King of Mercenaries.”

As expected, the king observed a glimmer of fascination in the minister’s eyes upon hearing the blood-soaked legend, rather than shock at the obscure name.