Chapter 222
“…A request?”
At the implied question of what the request was, Nahun smiled slightly. He stepped closer to Vilred and whispered quietly just loud enough for him to hear.
“There will be many changes in the rankings at this council.”
“…That’s to be expected.”
Many Demon Kings, including Jepar, Morax, and Bune, had perished, and even Amon, who ranked seventh, had lost his life. This meant that the Demon Kings ranked below seventh would rise one rank, and a new powerful Demon King would be appointed.
Additionally, the emergence of the supernova Seere von Debata would have a considerable impact. She and her allies would rise significantly in the rankings, and the absence of the Demon Kings ranked around 40, who had been utterly defeated by Seere, would also have a substantial influence.
There would probably be one of the most significant shifts in rankings in history. Vilred was puzzled as to why Nahun was stating something so obvious.
This question was soon resolved by Nahun himself.
“If Your Majesty is assigned a ranking within the top 20, I would appreciate it if you could cast a dissenting vote.”
“…What does that mean?”
No matter how he looked at it, it was a strange request. If his lord’s rank rose, it should be a good thing; why was he asking for the opposite instead?
“Did I hear that correctly? You’re asking to lower your lord’s rank…?”
“Yes. You heard correctly.”
Vilred looked at Nahun with slight disbelief, but he did not lose his smile and continued to grin.
“What kind of foolishness is this?”
“I cannot disclose that to Your Majesty.”
It was a smile that completely concealed his true intentions. Many who try to hide their expressions with a standard smile show at least some change in their demeanor.
For example, when they hear shocking news, their brow may twitch slightly, or their lips may move when surprised…
But the man in front of him, Nahun, showed not even the slightest hint of change. Vilred sighed wearily.
“Is there any guarantee that if I accept your proposal now, the fact won’t be revealed later? Your lord’s ally is Citri, after all.”
“If you wish, you may proceed with the contract.”
“…”
Vilred shook his head. It was obvious that if they proceeded with a contract here, all the other Demon Kings would be watching. To even mention a contract meant that he was serious about keeping quiet…
“Understood.”
From Vilred’s perspective, it wasn’t a particularly difficult request, and the risk of the facts that Nahun knew being exposed here was too great. As Vilred accepted, Nahun nodded slightly and bowed his head.
“Thank you for your precious time.”
With that, Nahun seemed to have nothing further to say and withdrew. Vilred called over a passing attendant, placed the wine glasses onto a tray, and muttered after downing his drink.
“I don’t know what that guy is up to.”
Vilred quietly watched Nahun’s back. He was now approaching the Demon King ranked 10th, Buer. Surely, he wouldn’t be…
‘…Is he asking to lower his lord’s rank?’
Vilred had no way of knowing why he was going through such trouble. After thinking for a while, he slammed his glass down and shook his head as if he couldn’t understand. He then left the banquet hall.
In the corridor, a shadow followed closely beside Vilred. He commanded the shadows accompanying him.
“Remove that guy named Nahun tonight.”
Keeping a promise wasn’t difficult, but just knowing that ‘fact’ was a problem. As Vilred issued his order, the shadows that had been nearby vanished silently.
“I don’t know how he found out, but… tomorrow should be quiet.”
#
Convincing Buer wasn’t that difficult. Known as the best physician in the Demon World, he had a keen interest in medicines and herbs. Nahun used the game information he knew to trade with him by revealing the location of a very rare herb.
From Buer’s perspective, it wasn’t too difficult of a request, and his eyes sparkled with excitement at the herb’s rarity, leading him to accept Nahun’s proposal quickly.
‘Satisfying indeed.’
Seere, Citri, and Gremony had also fulfilled their roles effectively, and they managed to gather a majority of the top-ranking Demon Kings who would oppose the ranking decision. Just in case, Nahun also approached Barbatos and found that he expressed his willingness to help as well.
“Looks like you’re having fun.”
“Hmm?”
“Teacher, you were just smiling.”
Seere, who was walking down the hallway, said that. Nahun realized with surprise that he had been smiling unconsciously and spoke.
“It’s just that things are going well. I guess I did it without realizing.”
“It looks nice.”
“…Indeed.”
“Yes.”
Seere said with a light laugh.
“For now, Teacher.”
“Hmm?”
“Would you like to take a short walk?”
Nahun blinked slightly. He wasn’t so naïve that he wouldn’t pick up on the hidden intention behind her words.
“Uh… okay.”
“Come back in about 20 minutes.”
“…You know I have to wake up early tomorrow, right?”
“That should be fine. Oh, by the way…”
Seere turned around, suddenly smiling as her white hair fluttered slightly before settling down, and she covered her lips gently while giggling.
“Teacher isn’t getting impatient, right?”
Her mischievous smile startled Nahun, and he stammered out.
“…Me?”
“Why are you flustered?”
“…I didn’t. I’ll head in shortly, so you go ahead.”
“Okay~♪”
Seere laughed joyfully and returned to her room first. Nahun scratched his head slightly, turning his steps toward the walking path. He figured that if he walked around casually, about 20 minutes would have passed.
“…”
At that moment, the corridor suddenly fell silent. The soldiers of Malepare had been patrolling regularly, so there should have been some sounds, yet there was none at all.
‘When did it get quiet?’
Thinking it over, it seemed to have begun shortly after parting from Seere. Then it probably wasn’t her that was being targeted, but the objective was…
“…me.”
Nahun let out a hollow laugh. He seemed to take a step forward. At that moment, a black dagger that could barely be seen in the darkness flew toward him.
However, Nahun did not completely step forward. It was as if he had anticipated it; he stepped back instead. At the same time, his outstretched hand swiftly deflected the dagger that had come from the darkness, and he stepped forward again.
“Cut the nonsense.”
He broke the rhythm of his opponent’s movements in an instant and brought the flow toward himself. In this darkness, Nahun seemed to be able to see something, continuously changing direction as he struck down all the daggers flying toward him with his bare hands.
As he continued to knock down the daggers, Nahun narrowed his eyes. Then, with a newfound conviction, he threw his body forward.
Boom!!!
“Your movements are complicated. You’ve trained quite well.”
Blood dripped from Nahun’s cheek. It was a wound he received on purpose by allowing the last thrown dagger to graze by without deflection. And remarkably, in his grasp was the assassin who had thrown the daggers at him.
“Gah… cough…!”
Seeing his size, Nahun recognized he was a man. Despite his agile movements, he had quite a robust physique, but Nahun recalled the way he had moved just moments ago when throwing the dagger.
“Quite a coveted skill you have.”
“Gah, cough… die… you…”
“Who sent you? No, that’s too obvious. Who else would dare do this to me?”
Nahun asked the assassin he was pinning down.
“Vilred, that bastard must have ordered you. To your ‘shadows.’”
“…!”
The man widened his eyes in shock.
The existence of the shadows that served as Vilred’s arms was not officially known. Though they were tasked with all sorts of dirty work, they were reliable in skill and loyalty, making them the unofficial individuals Vilred trusted the most.
Thus, to prevent their information from leaking out, he was more careful than anyone in hiding the facts regarding them, alongside whatever he kept hidden underground.
Then, what kind of person was this who knew both of his lord’s secrets? The assassin let out a pained groan but tried to maintain his loyalty to the end. He had prepared poison in his mouth to swallow and die, but Nahun’s grip moved to his throat in an instant.
“Kak…!”
“Where do you think you’re going?”
Realizing it as well, Nahun gripped his chin tightly to prevent him from closing his mouth. He slipped his fingers in and pulled out the suicide poison he had prepared in his mouth.
“…Thorough fellows.”
The assassin’s eyes widened. There was only one individual caught, yet Nahun had used the term ‘fellows,’ which implied many.
“Oh, no…!”
Nahun threw the poison away while simultaneously extending his hand and releasing magic. The poison vial shattered under the magic, splattering the poison on the face of the person who had approached from behind without him noticing.
“Gyaa, gyaaaah!?!?!”
As expected of a potent poison capable of killing instantly, it caused excruciating pain upon contact with the skin. Although the entire face was covered with a mask, the exposed areas—eyes and their surroundings—suffered horrendous agony.
Nahun tightened his grip on the chin of the male assassin. With a crunching sound, the man who couldn’t even scream fell forward. His jaw broken, he could no longer move his mouth.
“I won’t kill you. I need to explain what happened to Malepare tonight.”
“Ggk, gghh….”
“Ha… cough… kaah…”
One side was unable to respond thanks to the poison, while the other was silenced due to a shattered jaw. Nahun approached the female assassin who had been squirming from the effects of the poison and forcibly retrieved the poison that she had been keeping in her mouth. He then stowed it away in his pocket, intending to submit it as evidence when explaining the chaos.
“Your skills are commendable. I’ll acknowledge that.”
Nahun hadn’t even noticed the presence of the female assassin until he got closer. This indicated how adept she was at hiding her presence. It illustrated just how skilled the shadows were.
If she were facing a lesser Demon King, she would have succeeded in the ambush without a second thought. However…
The opponent was not someone to take lightly.
“It was a grave mistake to target me. Shadows.”
