The NTR Hero Knelt Before the Demon King – Chapter 114

Kikero, the power-holder of the Elf Church Country, was feeling overwhelmingly anxious, spending time in a restless state lately.

“Damn… Why is it that there’s been no news until now?”

Kikero had gathered only the strongest among his comrades, including Antonius, to form an assassination team. The mission assigned to these dispatched assassins was to eliminate Octavia, who was being held captive in the Demon Kingdom, thereby provoking a breakdown in the peace treaty.

And if the relationship between the elves and the Demon Kingdom soured again, especially if the Demon Kingdom unleashed the Black Flame in anger, turning the World Tree Jupiter to ashes, then Kikero would successfully complete the primary objective given to him by… Amun.

However, despite his expectations, news about Antonius… or rather, the news of Octavia’s assassination, had yet to arrive even after enough time had passed.

“Could it be that Antonius… was defeated? No, that can’t be. Antonius is the strongest warrior of the Elf Church Country, blessed directly by Lord Amun. The only one capable of defeating him in the Demon Kingdom is the Demon King himself. There’s no way he could fail the mission…”

Thus, between the palpable anxiety and the hope that everything was fine, Kikero could only wait anxiously for results.

At that moment—

*Crash!*

“What… what is going on?”

In the next moment, a group of soldiers suddenly burst into his office, kicking open the door.

Kikero stood up, feeling a deep sense of confusion as the soldiers swiftly surrounded him, pressing their swords against his neck.

“You lot! How dare you commit such rudeness! Do you even know who I am?”

“Of course we do, Kikero. You are the delegate of our Elf Church Country, a highly esteemed scholar. And now, you are a traitor who tried to sell the country to the Empire.”

“Wha… what did you say?”

The words of the soldier, uttering an unexpected claim, made Kikero realize that something had gone terribly wrong, and he protested vehemently.

“Traitor? What nonsense is that? Who made such ridiculous accusations?”

“You don’t need to know that. First, let’s go. You can explain everything in front of Your Holiness, the Pope.”

“Let… go of me! You scoundrels! I command you to release me at once!”

As he was roughly dragged away by the soldiers, Kikero protested fiercely. However, despite his cries, the hands gripping him did not loosen.

*

“I sincerely apologize for the actions of our elves.”

Before the Demon King, the Pope and the high-ranking ministers of the Elf Church Country knelt respectfully, bowing their heads in seek of forgiveness.

Watching this, the armored Demon King slowly nodded and extended his hand towards the Pope to help him up.

“I will accept your apology. From now on, our Demon Kingdom and Elf Church Country shall be friends once more.”

“Thank you so much for accepting our apology, Demon King.”

It was the first official apology from the elves, who had never bowed their heads for hundreds of years. This gesture somewhat alleviated the deep resentment and anger harbored by the citizens of the Demon Kingdom towards the elves.

And after the Pope’s apology concluded, the moment he returned to the Church Country, a massive storm arose immediately within the Elf Church Country.

A rebellion shook the entire Church country. It became known to the people that delegate Kikero, alongside Paladin Antonius, was trying to betray the Church Country by colluding with the Falcon Empire to assassinate Octavia, who was imprisoned in the Demon Kingdom.

Fortunately, their attempt had failed; however, Antonius was killed in the process.

This incident initiated a large-scale hunt to uncover the traitors who aimed to sell the country to the Falcon Empire.

“Arrest Kikero and his associates without exception. And conduct Faith Detection on all elves to uncover those who have betrayed their faith and sided with the wicked Falcon Empire!”

Faith Detection, a magic that found those using powers not derived from the Divine Power of the World Tree Jupiter, was executed across all elves within the Church Country as commanded by the Pope.

This magic could only detect when someone was using clearly different power rather than simply having weak faith.

As a result, quite a number of elves, including several high elves, were apprehended, and the Pope offered them a final choice.

“If you repent and return to following Lord Neltelion now, I will not ask about past mistakes and will forgive you.”

The Pope spoke with profound mercy. Observing him, some thought that perhaps this was too lenient of a decision for traitors who sought to betray their country.

However…

In response to the Pope’s offer, Kikero and the other elves vehemently shouted.

“No! We need none of that! Kill us now!”

“I would rather choose death than submit to such a false god!”

Contrary to expectations, instead of begging for their lives, these heretics began to curse that they should be killed.

Watching their maddened demeanor, the citizens felt a deep sense of chill.

The Pope slowly nodded at them.

“If that is your wish, then I cannot help it. Everyone bear with it. Let their corpses be hung in the middle of the street to serve as a lesson for what happens to those who forsake Lord Neltelion and serve the wicked Evil God.”

“Yes! Your Holiness!”

Thus, the situation concluded with the execution of those who had rejected mercy.

As a result of this incident, the Pope’s authority, previously tarnished, was restored, and the faith that had been disrupted within the Church Country could be reorganized.

However, at this moment, the many citizens of the Elf Church Country watching these events did not realize the fact that what seemed like a simple uprising of traitors was far from simple.

*

“With that, we can finally breathe a sigh of relief.”

“Indeed, Your Holiness, but honestly, I am still truly shocked. I never thought Kikero would fall so low…”

Watching the heads of the executed traitors hung in the square, the Pope and his retainers spoke in somber tones.

From their perspective, even if their intentions diverged slightly, it was someone who had always worked for the good of the country, now revealed to have been led into ruin by the Evil God.

“Amun, the Evil God…”

“According to the Demon Kingdom, I have heard that he is the new god being served after betraying Lord Neltelion in the Empire. Although it is not openly apparent, it supposedly has spread to the Beastman Kingdom and the Magic Kingdom as well.”

Amun, a being whose records could not be found in any history books. However, both Octavia, whom they met when visiting the Demon Kingdom, and Antonius, who became utterly horrific, provided clear truths about this entity.

Realizing the necessity to devise a response to this malevolent presence, the Pope became determined.

“First, it would be wise to inform other countries where this fact is known only to us. If we do well, perhaps we can rally the Beastman Kingdom and the Magic Kingdom to our side as well.”

“I believe so too. Though both nations weren’t proactive during our previous war with the Empire, once they learn of the Empire’s filthy hands reaching out, they surely won’t remain silent.”

“I will send a messenger immediately. Surely, as we speak, the Imperial scum… Amun’s minions are acting in real time.”

“Yes, please do so. Although times are tough for everyone, let us all do our best for the fate of this world.”

“Yes, Your Holiness.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

Thus, the elves answered with a mission to shoulder the world’s fate.

However, despite their outward appearance, at this moment, they were secretly sporting wry smiles inside themselves.

The Falcon Empire, with evidence suggesting it served the Evil God.

If this fact could be exploited well, just as they isolated the Demon Kingdom in the past, it might also be possible to isolate the Falcon Empire this time.

The Empire, occupying the center of the continent while flaunting its might, had recently invaded directly to snatch away its territories.

Just months prior, they were allies; now, they had turned into deadly foes. The Elf Church Country could not afford to miss this opportunity to potentially isolate and crush the Falcon Empire.