“Your Majesty.”
His servants by his side were calling him, but there was no response from King Atreus.
What should I do now?
The Elves were a high-classed species born with sacred blood. There were rumors that circulated that encountering even a single one of them in a lifetime was a rare feat. However, when their majestic force emerged in his kingdom and when he finally stood before their Queen in their holy tower, he felt that the divine glory of Lord Lacryma had, at last, descended upon him.
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The ancient flames of Seleon and the great ancient dragon, which were only mentioned in legends, were having a sacred war on this land. How ecstatic he was on the first day.
However, the elves were different from what he expected. They were filled with as much arrogance and selfishness as they were powerful. They incessantly poured out criticisms after taking away massive military provisions, saying the quality was poor, and did not help the expedition forces and instead waged their own war.
After the Demon Kings left, the elves became the problem.
What if they didn’t return to Elsland? What if they continued to make unbearable demands as a price for the holy war?
He had only met the Queen once, but even now King Atreus felt like he was facing her cold and conceited gaze. He, of course, knew that the gaze was the same as when he looked down upon the lowly.
As King Atreus shivered and widened his eyes, he heard his servants’ voices.
“Your Majesty. The elves’ main force has returned. But. But…”
“But what?”
“...It seems they are preparing to retreat.”
“Are they leaving?”
The servant replied with a grim expression after seeing the King’s excitement, “It is not something that you should be happy about. They abandoned us, Your Majesty.”
The servant gave him more explanations. However, he didn’t know why the elves suddenly wanted to return to Elsland despite facing the enemy they had been waiting for. One thing was clear. If they fell into despair now, then they would surely perish.
Now, it was obvious where the Demon Corps would turn to. King Atreus had experienced their strength in previous battles.
“Who knows about this?”
King Atreus suddenly felt his blood boiling.
“Only Your Majesty and us. We will also prepare our soldiers to retreat.”
“Stop. Trying to save one thing can cause the loss of everything. Trying to save everyone will kill all of us. Our wise ancestors said that sometimes, you have to let go of everything even if it is painful. Now is the time.”
King Atreus declared that he would not return to the royal city.
“I will entrust myself to this path to Azadun.”
If only he could avoid the impending death by the Demon Corps…he could easily abandon his blood relatives left in the castle.
***
The hand of the Elf Queen was caressing a sturdy man’s body with indulgence. The relic, on her other hand, was intricately shaped with the emblem of the Lord Lacryma, which was so large that it protruded beyond her palm. As her slender fingers brushed the crevices between the seams, a soft groan flowed from the man’s lips.
What on earth is this power? It feels like I will be addicted to it. No, I can’t get out of it already.
A small laugh burst out from the queen’s lips. It was a smirk that mocked the queens of the past. In history, she was the only one allowed to experience this pleasure. The previous ones had returned to Lord Lacryma without even knowing such ecstasy.
It was the relic that had been lying dormant in the depths of the Sanctuary. Ever since the mandate came down to retrieve it, the queen had been clinging to it day and night.
However, she could never get accustomed to the sacred power flowing from it even until now. It only offered new and astonishing sensations, making it impossible to grow tired of it.
Furthermore, she had no regret for losing Kanonas, who was also Lusla’s lover and son, in exchange for retrieving the relic. Compared to this relic that fulfilled both sexual and emotional desires, Kanonas had only provided physical comfort.
Then, a male voice came out of the door, “How are you going to bear the wrath of the great beings? What do you mean by retreat?”
It was a voice sharp as a knife, containing restrained emotion. It was Duke Anikas, a noble the queen found troublesome.
“This is not the court.”
She worded it as if telling him not to commit sacrilege. They were inside the tower of the sanctuary, where Lord Lacryma’s divinity was intensely present. It was where the greatest relics of the altar, which had been hidden for eons, had revealed itself.
Anikas looked at the relic in the queen’s hand and twitched his eyebrows.
“I am glad you are here. I heard something hard to believe.”
“Do you know the difference between an oracle and an arbitrary decision?”
“Of course.”
“Then, you must know what kind of sin it is to commit a crime under the guise of an oracle.”
“Do you enjoy tormenting me? Your teachings must end only when I die.”
Anikas realized the times had changed after hearing her words. The order to retreat was the proof. The queen had nothing to lose by retreating, but it was different for the court nobles including himself.
This was the era of the sanctuary. The queen’s standing would increase daily as the nobles who lost their mercenaries would weaken.
The queen then changed her relaxed posture and spoke. Her hand, touching the relic, stopped.
“Anyway, there is no way to prove the oracle to you, Duke. If I had committed a crime under the guise of a mandate, you and I would not be facing each other right now. This is a holy war that began in the name of our Lord Lacryma. The end of the war will be under the name of the Lord. Do you get it? You should not blame me and our Lord, but rather blame your lack of faith.”
“There were no words left by Saint Cassian regarding this war.”
“We have not found all the words of the saint. And judging the grand will of Lord Lacryma with our small understanding is a great sin. Please convince the other nobles well. I trust you.”
“What about Greenwood?”
The queen cut him off sharply, “Lord Lacryma is only in Elsland.”
This wretched land had been abandoned long ago.
“And you, Duke, and others will be under the rule of the true ruler of Elsland, me.”
Anikas turned away without any response. The queen stopped herself from laughing out loud while recalling the expression Anikas had just had before he turned.
I never thought such a day would come in my era.
Her idle life of being immersed in hedonism was about to be over. Therefore, she became sad.
If I hadn’t lost the Soul Ring, I would have still been able to enjoy that too.
Originally, three sacred relics were passed down in Elsland from ancient times. One was the ‘Symbol of Lord Lacryma’ currently in her hand, and it was connected to the awe-inspiring strength residing in the Tower of Sanctuary. It was enshrined in the bedroom of successive queens.
Another one was the Soul Ring, which went missing along with the news of Aslan. According to the records, it used to be Doom Arukuda’s scythe before it was purified after being seized by Saint Cassian. It was an item that symbolized greed and gluttony and replaced Doom Arukuda’s small mouth. It was placed in the Grand Chapel.
The last relic was enshrined in the Temple of the Ancients, under the protection of the world tree.
I must visit the Temple of the Ancients on my way back.
At that time, the outer wall of the tower was gradually fading away.
***
We were not late. There was no doubt that the elves had already retreated by the time we arrived. Fucking Old One. As I was excited about the plan to destroy one of their towers, the scene somewhat dampened my enthusiasm.
Below, the corps’s formations were built like a circle, surrounding the remaining elves’ corps who had failed to flee. There was nothing left for us to do. Over ten thousand Awakened were there, divided into fourteen corps.
The battle was only occurring within a single corps that had penetrated the encirclement. It seemed enough, and the Awakeneds’ onslaught was brutal as if their anger had accumulated from the previous battles. The entire space between the sky and earth was filled with screams. It was clear that the command had no intention to allow even a single deserter from the opponent.
We shifted our gaze slightly toward the northeast direction where ghosts were flying around like a flock of crows. Corpses were being dragged to the direction where Joshua’s occupied city was located as if by instinct. Also, seeing that the fallen bodies were rising whenever their fellow dead passed by, it was obvious that they would form a large army by the time they arrived at their base.
However, Doom Kaos’s patience seemed to have reached its limit. I was confident about it as a wiggling movement of space appeared behind me.
Master!
Joshua urgently called me. It was certainly different from the time when I was bound by Doom Kaos. If we wanted to resist together, then I thought we could somewhat counter the force with which Doom Kaos was trying to pull me.
Nonetheless, mankind still needed someone who could ensure the safety of the mainland, whether it was Doom Kaos or the Old One.
I conveyed to Joshua that he was not to intervene, and did not resist the force sucking me. The handsome face that was being crushed in my vision disappeared. The smell of blood in Greenwood also vanished then.
Ptich-black darkness descended all around. I spoke with my head raised toward the curtain.
“I have returned as per my oath. My Lord, Doom Kaos.”
The curtain fluttering was an ominous sign. The bastard knew what I had monopolized, so it was time to demand more strongly.
“Also, I have killed Silver and Black as I promised. You must also keep your promise and promote me to a higher position,” I shouted.
“Please grant me the position that Entegasto used to have. Also, please grant an appropriate position to the Undead Emperor to serve your servant.”
One more time!
“I don’t know why Doom Arukuda and the Great Gold are not participating in the battle. However, there must be a reason they cannot participate. Please keep in mind that I am the only one who can end this tiresome war.”
“Please give me the Land of Death that was granted to Entegasto. Please give me the powers that were granted to Entegasto. Please give me the opportunity to see your form beyond the curtain. I will end this war at your feet.”
I needed to go beyond the curtain to verify what these things were like.
