<The Demon Lord of the Swordsmanship Family Chapter 162>
In the past, during the days of the empire, I was undeniably the strongest among many formidable warriors.
It was me who made the Mercenary King, renowned on the battlefield, kneel.
I was also the one who shattered the golems of the proud Dwarf Lord.
Even the guardian of the World Tree, who protected the Elf Queen, had his bow broken by me.
And it was me who broke the sword of the Sword Master, the idol of all knights.
That was me, the Demon Lord.
I was the absolute ruler of an era.
But if you ask whether history has ever seen an absolute ruler like me, that’s not true either.
“Kukuku. My disciple, don’t be overly proud. Do you really think there wasn’t someone like you back in the day?”
The empire, which closed the ancient era and ushered in a new one, was founded by the ‘Founder King.’ The father of all magicians, the ‘Arch Mage’ and the ‘bl**d Lord,’ the ‘Son of God,’ the ‘Oracle,’ and so on, gathered together.
These were heroes mentioned only in ancient history books.
“Hmm? From your expression, I sense you aren’t quite convinced. True, the names I’ve mentioned are only found in moldy old history books, so it makes sense you wouldn’t feel connected.”
As always, the old man knew me well.
To be honest, that was exactly how I felt.
These so-called heroes were probably mythical beings anyway, and even if I defeated them, what would I gain from comparing myself to questionable figures?
The comparison group was simply wrong.
That’s why the old man picked three specific figures.
“You sure are picky. Well, then, let me choose relatively concrete ones. Watch closely…”
The first one is ‘Elder Queen (Elder Queen).’
“The Elves, for whom the concept of amiability was meaningless. She was called the Rebirth of the Spirit King.”
It is recorded that the spirits danced in joy on the day of her birth, and during the first ritual to summon a spirit, the Earth Spirit King responded.
This monster, during the ‘Racial War’ 200 years ago, extinguished raging flames of war with her solo power and sat the whole continent down for peace negotiations.
The second one is ‘The Enigmatic One (不可思議).’
“Exactly as you imagine, the ‘Enigmatic One’ from the fairy tales.”
A truly enigmatic being. Whether human, elf, dwarf, or anything else, nothing is truly known about them.
The only thing known is that they appear randomly, in any place or time, and propose bets. The stakes in these bets are the most cherished things of the participants. Losing the bet means losing something precious, and winning grants a wish—any wish.
An incident involving the Enigmatic One occurred just over a hundred years ago in the maritime kingdom ‘Makalium.’ The winner wished to erase the corrupt country, and the Enigmatic One turned Makalium into a sunken city within a day.
The last one: ‘King of Swords (劍王).’
“The King of Swords, a relatively recent figure. I remember seeing him as a young child when I peeked over my teacher’s shoulder.”
This was a person who was called the King of Swords despite never wielding one, also known as the ‘Grand Magician.’
He was born with the ‘Nebula’ power, which realized his dreams, and thus his sword possessed the ‘Change’ attribute, a divine power that could not only change the form of the sword but manipulate the laws themselves.
“The King of Swords was the ultimate absolute power. Even compared with you, a Demon Lord.”
So don’t get arrogant, my disciple.
In my memories, the old man smiled as if provoking me…
…
…
‘These legends were real.’
I fixed my gaze on Ismail, who was playing with Spring.
That brat harbors an unusual seed, the power to modify or even transform any law.
The nebula.
I knew what it was at first sight because I had read about it in the records.
The Sword Master’s forehead glowed with light, like a falling meteor, and this was called the ‘nebula’s power.’
Of course, this record mentioned the event when the King of Swords deployed his ability, but my eyes, which have already glimpsed the ‘truth,’ see it clearly: the shining star-like thing on Ismail’s forehead.
But…
“This is exactly like the record.”
“Star? What do you mean?”
“Ah, nothing. Talking to myself.”
As I apologized to Muhammad in a rush, Jin Yu-ri hissed and said,
“Hey, Park Ki-hyuk, are you not listening? It’s rude. Rude.”
Though it hurts my pride to hear ‘rude’ from Jin Yu-ri, she isn’t wrong.
We were here as guests in a grand reception hosted by the king, and to disregard the host’s story shows blatant disrespect.
I bowed my head deeply to Muhammad.
“I’m sorry.”
“Do not give it a second thought. Instead, we should apologize to you. After all, the awkwardness started with us meeting for the first time, didn’t it?”
“Ah…”
“Please forgive our impoliteness.”
Muhammad, seemingly still embarrassed, scratched his head and spoke.
To explain this clearly, I’ll need to rewind slightly.
We arrived at the airport on Mary’s private plane and immediately transferred to a limousine on the runway.
The road, empty of cars—yes, strangely empty, as confirmed by the butler who explained that the king had ordered the area to be cleared—led us smoothly to the kingdom while being treated so generously that words like ‘lavish’ feel inadequate.
“Welcome…”
“Princess!!”
“Mommy, just a moment. I have a baby here!”
“Really! Really! You’re so mean!”
Before proper introductions, Mary’s mother, the Second Queen, showered her with a barrage of scolding, grabbed her by the hair, and disappeared somewhere. Naturally, Jun-woo, who had accompanied her, followed.
We watched this scene helplessly before moving here.
“…”
“…”
Without an agreement, we both fell silent.
Muhammad from the embarrassment of the event, and me from the formidable presence of Queen chasing after Mary.
Just as the mood was about to get awkward again, Jin Yu-ri jumped in.
“No, I get the Queen’s feelings. If my daughter, after being sent abroad for studies, comes back…”
“Yu-ri, do you want to d*e? Don’t say that in front of Spring.”
Not acceptable, devil!
For Spring’s sake!
“Anyway, if I were in the Queen’s shoes, I’d have done the same thing. Though certainly, Mary and Jun-woo really go well together.”
“H…H…Thank you, madam. You are merciful indeed.”
“Madam?!”
“Not a madam!”
“Right? I merely thought you two look very good together…”
“Oh! Such discernment…”
As I hurried to cut off Jin Yu-ri’s words,
“Let’s talk about something else. Let’s discuss what you previously mentioned… the… the royal succession.”
“The Succession Contest.”
“Yes, exactly. The Royal Succession Contest. Isn’t the palace in chaos because of this right now?”
“The Succession Contest is merely a smokescreen. The real cause is Saman, the Fourth Queen’s son, accused in the assassination of agents related to the contest.”
Of course, the topic of royal succession brought a somber atmosphere.
Nevertheless, this situation was not unfamiliar to me.
‘This feels familiar.’
Isn’t it just another common struggle for the throne?
Though the duels between ‘Grand Warriors’ to gain the throne are quite radical, situations like these aren’t entirely uncommon. For someone who once lived in the empire, this tale is exceedingly familiar.
The battle for more power… In my experience, the common element in these power struggles is the lack of clear good or evil.
There is no clear-cut good, and there is no pure evil. Therefore, I cannot definitively determine whether Muhammad, who is speaking politely to me, is good or evil.
Still, Muhammad seems indeed astute as his reputation suggests, picking up intuitively on my changing demeanor, and altering the topic.
“It might surprise you, but even I, at this age, feel the weight of inheriting the throne. If it were possible, I want to avoid it.”
“Really?”
“Is that so?”
“I just want to live my life freely as an ordinary human. Spending time with my family.”
Then he showed us a picture of his daughter.
A woman, smiling warmly, perhaps his wife, with an angelic baby nestled in her arms.
She’s genuinely beautiful.
“Hmm, so… in essence, what you’re saying is… you’d like to rest but have been forced onto the throne, right?”
“Exactly, madam.”
At that moment, I asked coldly,
“Is there any way for you to step down from the succession?”
“Park Ki-hyuk!”
“Out of the way.”
The average power-seeker could easily be angered by such a question, but Muhammad is clearly no ordinary man. While a little uncomfortable, he unexpectedly offered an alternative answer.
“Indeed, that would be one solution. But…”
Muhammad gave a bitter laugh.
“If there was another alternative candidate besides me …”
The current main contenders for the throne are three:
Muhammad, Muhammad’s uncle, the Duke, and Salman, the Fourth Queen’s son.
“Salman, as I’ve already explained, is cruel and savage in character, and has many significant issues. If you wish, you can investigate personally. A stroll near the palace will make that clear to you.”
Excluding Salman.
The remaining candidate is the Duke.
“The Duke is an excellent man; his character and learning have no faults. Personally, he’s been kind to me too.”
“Only, his religious views are problematic. He’s excessively radical.”
“Especially since religious issues within the ‘African Union’ have not ceased. As mediators, we have always been considered moderate. If we switch to radicalism, it would truly be catastrophic.”
So one is a personality breakdown, the other is a fanatic…
Family feuds, political struggles, and even religion are now tangled up. This is the perfect trifecta. It’s giving me a headache just imagining it.
Muhammad smiled bitterly and added,
“For both my personal reasons and for the good of this nation, I must become the king.”
Given the lack of clear circumstances, I couldn’t trust him 100%, but if his words were true, it was a convincing answer.
Then the next question was obvious.
Muhammad carefully gauged my reaction before speaking.
“So, I would like to humbly request… may I appoint you, Mr. Park Ki-hyuk, as my proxy…”
At that moment,
“Daddy!”
Spring abruptly interrupted, rushing in.
“I’m going out to play with ‘El’!”
She then took Ismail by the hand and left the room.
But… did I just imagine it? Did they really hold hands?
I can’t be wrong about that, right?
Tell me I’m wrong…
…
Spring liked ‘El.’
Here, ‘El’ is Ismail’s nickname, a name only his parents and older brother are supposed to use.
Anyway, Spring liked El for many reasons. The secret jewel on his forehead, his bright eyes… but most of all!
“Sister?”
“Sister! That’s right. From today, Spring is a sister. El’s sister.”
A sister, huh? Adding ‘older sister’ to her titles!
Is that what being an adult is like? Spring was thoroughly satisfied.
In that sense.
“We need to eat tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes)!”
“Tteokbokki?”
“Never heard of it?!”
“What is tteokbokki?”
“Red, soft, and something friends always eat together…”
Spring tried to explain while thinking hard, but El didn’t seem overly interested.
Tch, I need to teach him about the greatness of tteokbokki!
Gah, it’s impossible!
Ultimately giving up on the explanation, Spring seized El’s hand decisively.
“Let’s go! Sister will buy you tteokbokki!”
“Huh?”
“You’ll definitely like it. Trust me!”
“Um, wait a second!”
“Daddy!! I’m going to play with El!”
“Ah, wait a moment!”
Girls this age often being bigger than boys is a common phenomenon.
Spring dragged the petite El almost forcibly out of the room. El’s cheeks were slightly flushed red as they left.
*
