"You didn't go and teach him the breathing technique on your own, did you?"
"Oh, sir, I'm being wrongly accused and it's killing me! Do I look like the kind of person who could teach someone a cultivation technique?"
The youngest dwarf broke into a cold sweat.
The breathing technique was the first stage of mana cultivation. The method itself wasn't difficult. But whether you could pull it off properly or not was a completely different matter. I had once thrown a fit myself, demanding that Lapis teach me martial arts. Back then, as she walked me through the breathing technique, she looked at me with icy eyes and—
—declared, "Your Grace Dantalion, you are hopelessly devoid of talent when it comes to anything related to martial arts."
After that day, I obediently practiced nothing but crossbow shooting. Meanwhile, Luke was racking up praise as a genius and whatnot with the very stats I'd painstakingly raised. The world was nothing if not absurd.
"He just swung about four hundred times, and then started breathing on his own—'hoo, hoo'—didn't that sound familiar? I listened closely, and sure enough, he was doing it right. Damn it. You have no idea how shocked I was, sir."
"How could a little brat from some backwater mountain hollow have figured out a cultivation technique all on his own?"
Zachary looked utterly disbelieving. The youngest dwarf thumped his own chest.
"Oh, would I really make something like that up? I already told you—see for yourself with your own two eyes. Even if you want to beat me up for it later, you can always do that then, can't you?"
"Rekan is right."
I chimed in with some supporting fire from the side.
"If this is true, then it's quite the fascinating development. Zachary, why don't you take charge of Luke for a while?"
"...Understood. But if Rekan turns out to have been lying—"
Zachary shot a glare at the youngest dwarf as he spoke.
"—I will deal with him strictly under military law."
"Sure thing. Cut my head off or whip me, do as you please."
The youngest dwarf answered back boldly.
"But sir, you'll be feeling the same way I do soon enough."
"Hmph, just you wait. I don't believe in any genius."
And so Jacri stepped away from the affairs of the leadership for a time.
A small commotion had arisen because of the Hero siblings, but in the grand scheme of things, it was nothing more than a ripple on the surface of a river. No matter how loudly the ripple crashed, the river continued flowing wherever it was headed. Just like that, our party kept moving forward as the operations unit of the Liberation Alliance.
Our original plan had been to take the Imperial Road and join up with the Empress of Frank. However, I took command of the party's movements and changed the plan. We headed toward the northern region of Frank.
The northern part of the Frank Empire was famous for its abundance. Unlike the northeast, large-scale land reclamation projects had been carried out extensively here, and come autumn, golden wheat fields stretched from horizon to horizon. It also boasted the largest population. You could rightfully call it the lifeblood of the Frank Empire.
Two Demon Lords were stationed in this region.
We needed to cooperate with them to topple Frank's territories. If they attacked from the outside while we worked from within, no territory, no matter how strong, could withstand it.
"Leraje is a key executive of the Plains Faction."
First, the fourteenth-ranked Demon Lord, Leraje.
"Behind Lord Barbatos and Lord Beleth, Lord Leraje is the most powerful. You can think of him as a traditional powerhouse. However, as you can see—"
Jeremy unrolled a parchment map. It depicted the geography of Frank in meticulous detail. A top-tier map fit for military use. As befitting the leader of the most elite assassination corps, he'd managed to acquire something that even nobility would never get to lay eyes on.
There were portions of the map marked with bold crosses in ink.
"Unlike most Demon Lords, his base of operations is located right in the middle of the continent. It's an extremely unfavorable position for expanding one's influence. Hehe, which is why Lord Zepar, whose rank is lower than Lord Leraje's, actually holds more sway within the Plains Faction."
Lord Beleth was ranked thirteenth, Leraje fourteenth, and Commander Zepar sixteenth.
By rank alone, Beleth and Leraje should have been competing for the second-in-command position within the Plains Faction. Yet in the recent Crescent Alliance Army campaign as well, the ones leading that rivalry were Lord Beleth and Commander Zepar.
My chest tightened with unease. Someone weaker receiving greater standing within a faction—it was rare for anyone to accept such a situation peacefully.
"I imagine there's quite a bit of dissatisfaction with the current state of affairs."
"Yes. Even after the Crescent Alliance Army was formed, Lord Leraje was unable to participate in the main force. While the main force engaged the Human Alliance in fierce battle at the front, Lord Leraje operated with a separate detachment to disrupt the rear."
Thanks to that, the Frank Empire hadn't been able to commit its full strength against the Crescent Alliance Army. It was just a single Demon Lord, but being fourteenth in rank meant he was right below the highest echelons. The monster army under his command numbered at least two or three thousand.
Thousands of monsters under a Demon Lord's command, moving as one body to tear through the rear lines. A considerable number of the lords and nobles throughout the northern region found their hands tied. With their territories on the verge of being reduced to scorched earth at any moment, which lord would dare mobilize their forces rashly?
Leraje has been fulfilling his role admirably.
It's just that...
"The merit he receives is rather small compared to the effort he puts in..."
" certainly, there's a lack of glamour to it. After all, the flower of war is the pitched battle."
This was a role that went excessively unrewarded.
Look at Commander Zepar. He served as the vanguard and broke through the Black Mountains. All sorts of praise could follow from that. He had established a foothold for the Crescent Alliance Army, demonstrated the Plains Faction's strength, and adorned a glorious opening battle... How does Leraje compare?
In truth, Leraje had single-handedly paralyzed half of northern Frank. The human forces tied down by Leraje, unable to deploy, must have numbered at least fifteen thousand.
Holding off a full fifteen thousand troops single-handedly — from the perspective of the Crescent Alliance Army as a whole, this was without question a tremendous contribution.
But ultimately, it was guerrilla warfare.
Leraje's objective was not to win battles through combat. It was to plant in the enemy's hearts the anxiety that "we could be ambushed anytime, anywhere," thereby preventing them from marching out. Leraje would only make threatening strikes, and the human side would defend their territories... inevitably, no major battle would occur.
Naturally, visible deeds of valor became fewer.
In this situation, even if Barbatos wanted to reward Leraje, he couldn't. If Leraje were designated as the number one contributor, complaints would immediately erupt among the other Demon Lords.
—"We fought on the front lines, losing precious subordinates along the way, and we're only ranked third — how can a Demon Lord who hasn't shed a single drop of blood rank first?"
—"If that's the case, what reason do we have to fight and bleed?"
That's undoubtedly how things would go.
Of course, the Demon Lords knew this — that a separate detachment was just as important as the main force. But knowing something in your head and feeling it in your heart are two different things.
You lost hundreds of monsters you'd raised for decades, while the other side suffered no damage at all. And yet your contribution is supposed to be lesser? Most wouldn't accept that. Distributing merit was an exceedingly tricky task, more so than anyone could imagine.
"Leraje might end up hating me for this."
"Oh? Have you ever met Lord Leraje before?"
"No, it's practically our first meeting, but still."
I forced a wry smile.
"They've been quietly minding their own business this whole time, while I'm the one who shot up out of nowhere. Anyone in their shoes would be sour about it. They'd think, 'What's the point of even trying?'"
"But, Your Grace Dantalion, no matter what anyone says, you've made the greatest contribution..."
"This isn't a matter of logic. It's a matter of emotions."
Leraje would probably try to take out all the resentment and bitterness she'd been holding in on me. Punching someone by the Han River, then going to Jongno to vent—that's the kind of situation this was. An absolute nuisance. And since it was purely emotional, it made it even worse.
"I thought I could use the title of 'Barbatos's confidant' to gain an advantageous position in negotiations... tch. Can't freeload off someone else's reputation, it seems."
"Oh my. So what do we do?"
Jeremy looked intrigued.
"Should we head south instead? The Frank Empire does have a Demon Lord's Castle in the south as well."
"No. The south is far poorer than the north. Stirring things up there won't have any serious impact on the civil war. We're heading north."
"I knew it. I believed Your Grace Dantalion would say exactly that."
Jeremy beamed with delight. She was happy precisely because I'd chosen the harder path.
Tch, what a pervert. Why is there never a normal person around me? The longer this goes on, the more degenerates keep flocking to me. That old saying about birds of a feather? Total garbage.
Jeremy pointed to a different spot on the map.
"Next is Lord Ronove."
The twenty-seventh-ranked Demon Lord, Ronove.
"Lord Ronove belongs to the Mountain Faction. Lord Paimon has probably already issued orders for him to cooperate with us. We should be able to secure his allegiance easily."
"If only it were that simple. I'd have no complaints."
Good grief, even my luck was terrible. Of course the two Demon Lords just happened to belong to the Plains Faction and the Mountain Faction respectively. The closer they are, the worse they get along—there was a very high chance Leraje and Ronove were bitter enemies.
"Ugh."
A sigh escaped me. It was a sigh I'd long since gotten used to.
I had to work alongside a Demon Lord who held me in contempt, and on top of that, I needed to improve the relationship between the two of them. Not exactly a comforting thought. I'd need to sit down tonight and think through how to actually get both Demon Lords to cooperate…
And then there was the added burden of the Hero siblings. What even was this? The peaceful days I'd been living felt like a distant memory now. All I wanted was to tend my crops and live a quiet life, but the people around me just wouldn't leave me alone.
Laura, are you doing well? I already miss your adorable little moans. When I get back, please gift me three days and nights of blissful time together…
That evening, our group camped out under the open sky again.
In the end, Zachary had been too distracted by Luke to handle a single one of his executive duties the entire day. With both Jeremy and me having to keep everyone in line, the assassination squad ended up having to prepare both lunch and dinner. Feeding fifty people was more of a hassle than I'd expected.
"That minuscule little premature-ejaculating bastard!"
Jeremy was furious, convinced this was all some insidious scheme on the dwarf's part. For someone whose emotions were usually as calm as a still pond, it was rare to see her genuinely angry. Zachary and Jeremy were both absolute lone wolves most of the time, but the moment they got tangled up with each other, neither could hold steady. Soulmates, clearly.
I grinned and cracked a joke.
"Hey. Want me to officiate the wedding later? I am, after all, a priest of the Goddess."
"……"
One joke was all it took, and a look of genuine killing intent came right back at me. I cowed immediately. A trained assassin's murderous aura was no joke. I surrendered on the spot, grabbed the evening stew, and fled the scene. I thought I was going to die!
After wolfing down the stew and bread, the surroundings quickly grew dark. I slipped some money to the night watch—because really, without that little perk, what reason would there be to spend all night playing a staring contest with the wolves in the forest?—and gave them each a pat on the shoulder. The guards were deeply grateful.
"I know it's tedious work, but the Demon Lord's life rests in your hands tonight. For this one night, you're his personal royal guard."
"We are deeply honored!"
"Not a single ant will get past us, sir!"
As expected, for mercenaries, money meant loyalty. The moment a gold coin slipped into each of their pockets, their entire demeanor changed in an instant. It was like watching a jaded old sergeant transform into a wide-eyed fresh recruit. I gave a smirk and climbed into the carriage.
"……"
Daisy was asleep inside the carriage.
The girl's small body was curled up in the corner, her back turned to me. It had been over two days since the surgery, and there was still no sign of her waking. Honestly, part of me wished she'd just stay asleep forever and never open her eyes. I chided myself for the thought.
'But that can't be right.'
If she was the kind of girl who would end up like this, she never would have become the Hero in the first place. It was a pointless hope.
I lay down on the seat that doubled as a bed inside the carriage, spreading a blanket over the cushion. Riding all day had left me thoroughly exhausted. As soon as I sank into the plush bed, my eyes closed on their own.
Somewhere deep in the forest, night birds were singing. It was a pleasant lullaby. I fell asleep hoping I wouldn't have any nightmares tonight.
……
………….
…………………….
How much time had passed?
A voice drifted to me through the haze of half-consciousness.
"As I thought."
It was like a white curtain rippling endlessly in a gentle breeze. The voice softly knocked on my awareness.
I slowly lifted my eyelids. Through the surrounding darkness, a figure came into view.
A girl blacker than the night itself was right in front of me. She was sitting on top of me, using my body as her seat. She looked down at me with eyes devoid of any emotion.
Something sharp. A sharp dagger was pointed in my direction.
The sleepiness hadn't fully left my head yet. My eyelids were heavy. Before I could even grasp what was happening, Daisy murmured quietly.
"As I thought. It won't work."
She was gripping the dagger with both hands, aimed squarely at my throat.