"Oh, Lukren, have you finally decided to tell me what Akasha is?"
"Heh... Hehehe... Yes, Antirianus. You know nothing... absolutely nothing..."
The Archlich, who had lost the ability to continue fighting, let out a low chuckle as he lay defeated.
"I will give you Akasha, Antirianus."
"..."
"Help me."
At Archlich's words, the smile on Antirianus's face grew even more intense.
“Antirianus.”
“You don't have any ulterior motives, do you?”
Saviolin Turner listened to the conversation between them.
It was clear that they were exchanging words only they knew about.
There was no need to intervene just yet. Just listening to this conversation was informative enough.
She gestured for her allies, who were about to take action, to stand by as she observed the scene.
There was so much she didn't know.
But Akasha.
That word was etched powerfully in Turner's mind.
And there was unrest among the vampires.
The one called Antirianus didn't seem to gain the trust of his allies. The old man's smile grew darker, and the vampire slowly approached Archlich.
"Lukren, how many times must I ask?"
Crouching in front of Archlich, Antirianus whispered into his ear.
"I asked what Akasha does. I never asked for it."
"..."
"Wasn't it the same before? I never asked for Akasha. I only asked what it does. No one answered, so I eventually became curious."
"..."
"Curiosity can drive people mad."
Archlich was silent for a long time.
"Akasha... can make you a god."
"A god?"
"Yes, a god. With Akasha, you can become a god. Antirianus, both you and I can become gods."
At Archlich's words, Antirianus stood up.
"Hu, hahaha... haha. A god. A god... Hehehehehe..."
The old man began to laugh, covering his mouth as if in a fit of madness. Everyone stared at the bizarre conversation in silence.
"Hehehehehe..."
"Heh..."
"Hu..."
"..."
Abruptly.
The old man's laughter stopped, and his expression turned cold.
"I didn't expect it to be such a trivial thing."
If that was the true nature of Akasha, it seemed of no interest to the old man, and his face was filled with disappointment.
However, a small smile soon appeared on the disappointed old man's face.
"But even trivial things can become interesting depending on how they're used."
“Antirianus!”
“Hey! What are you trying to do?”
"Lukren, I'll take Akasha."
Spatial teleportation was impossible due to the vast barrier. It was also impossible to easily shake off the trackers in this place.
Yet, there were still many ways to get rid of them.
"Do you think you can escape, vampire?"
Saviolin Turner's words brought a smile to Antirianus' face.
"I might have thought of a method like that."
As the old man spread his hand, a large piece of parchment suddenly began to emit light.
"It seems to be worth the time I spent making it."
As the scroll glowed, a dense fog started to envelop the world.
It wasn't a simple magic to invoke, but if the scroll was prepared in advance, it could be used instantly.
"This magic is...!"
Quantum Maze.
Antirianus had prepared this large-scale barrier magic as a magic scroll.
As if anticipating a situation like this would arise someday.
There might be those who could break the Quantum Maze, but buying enough time to escape was entirely possible.
And that much time was more than enough to flee.
—---
Harriet was exhausted, and so was the Archduke. Consequently, both of them fell into a serious state of magical depletion.
Eleris replenished their magic using Syphon Mana, just as she had done for Ellen before. The two of them fell into a sleep-like state.
After the syphon mana dissipated, I could clearly see the thick fog that had disappeared reappearing on the ground.
The spell had been cast suddenly, so its scale was small. Though it was a vast fog that covered a wide area, we were out of its influence.
From the beginning, the battle had been taking place at such a great distance that even with enhanced vision, we couldn't properly see what was happening.
However, as if Eleris had seen what happened on the scene, her eyes widened.
"Antirianus has betrayed us."
"…Betrayal?"
"Yes, it seems… he has joined hands with Cantus Magna."
I hadn't believed that Antirianus would remain a loyal ally forever.
Knowing he was an untrustworthy ally, we had to use him while we could, and Antirianus had been genuinely cooperative.
I had expected him to act unexpectedly at a crucial moment.
But I didn't expect it to be now.
From afar, in the middle of the fog, Eleris and I could see a swarm of black bats carrying something and moving.
The bats, transformed from Antirianus, were taking the Archlich somewhere. As the distance was too great to intercept, Eleris and I had no choice but to watch the spectacle helplessly.
Antirianus had joined hands with Cantus Magna.
"Wherever those scoundrels go, we know where they will end up."
"…That's true."
Cantus Magna's wizards came here searching for the origin of the grimoires.
But this place was a manipulated origin, and the real source of the grimoires was elsewhere.
Now that Antirianus had joined forces with the Archlich, it was clear where the two of them would end up.
They would try to complete Akasha by finding the real source of the grimoires.
"Let's head to the underground of the Demon King's Castle. Before they get there, we either have to secure the grimoires or burn them."
"That's what we must do."
The Demon King's Castle basement held a clear value for those who sought it. After all, it was believed to be the source of the magical tomes, and its conquest would not only lead to the completion of the Akasha, but might also unleash an irreversible catastrophe.
If I couldn't stop Antirianus and the Archlich, I would be responsible for all the problems caused by the completion of the Akasha.
I could no longer act according to the situation and context.
I looked at the fallen Harriet.
"Rein... Hardt..."
Harriet faintly opened her eyes, gazing at me while lying down.
Had she only been unconscious for a moment, now regaining her consciousness? No, it felt as if she was still only half-conscious.
Harriet's expression seemed as if she was dreaming.
I hesitated, then sat down in front of the fallen Harriet, and carefully embraced her.
Antirianus's betrayal. How would things unfold from here?
Should I not have relied on him?
I don't know.
I know nothing.
Being judged by one's intentions is an ugly thing.
"Blockhead."
"…Yes."
"No matter what happens from now on... just remember one thing..."
Struggling, Harriet wrapped her arms around my neck.
"I wanted... to save everyone..."
One must be judged by the results.
To seek judgment for one's intentions, heart, or will is simply defeatism.
It's nothing more than an excuse for when I fail to accomplish my goals.
Still.
At least.
I wanted to do well.
I wanted to save everyone.
I hoped that someone, at least one person, would recognize that.
"Yes…"
Harriet, seemingly half-asleep, gently stroked my head.
"Trust…"
At those words, a burning sensation welled up inside my chest.
With those last words, Harriet closed her eyes, seemingly falling asleep.
It weighed on my heart to leave her like this, but there was no more time to waste.
The Mage Corps of the Saint Owan Empire would arrive soon, and both the Archduke and Harriet should be safe.
Eleris seemed to have recovered somewhat.
"Let's go, Eleris."
"Yes, Your Highness."
It was uncertain when those trapped in the Quantum Maze would escape.
Though I didn't know if Eleris and I could stop Antirianus and the Archlich alone, we were the only ones able to act at this moment.
—---
Eleris was exhausted, having received a single strike from Luna Artorius, and having shared her magical power with Harriet, who had used magic of an immense scale.
Eleris and I left the area where the spatial interference field was deployed.
We might have been better off waiting for Lucinil's escape from the Quantum Maze or receiving help from the Black Order, but as we couldn't be sure whether Antirianus and Archlich would head directly to the basement of the Demon King's Castle, we had to act immediately.
-Parat!
"Haa… haa…"
"Are you alright?"
"Yes, Your Highness… Just a little tired…"
I supported the exhausted Eleris, who was struggling even with the use of Mass Teleport, as we walked.
What was fortunate was that the Demon King's Castle garrison had completely withdrawn.
And so, upon arriving at the deserted Demon King's castle, we encountered no needless conflict with the Imperial Army.
As we entered the cold and desolate interior of the Demon King's castle, I continued walking while supporting Eleris.
An ancient Archdemon.
What could that have meant?
And why did Ellen's mother know about it?
"I apologize for hiding it, Your Highness…"
Even without saying anything, Eleris was the first to speak.
"I don't know the details… but now I think I understand. Why, despite disliking battles, I was the only one among the Council's houses who decided to help Darkland."
"…"
The members of the Vampire Council must have known that Eleris was originally an Archdemon. They did not seem to doubt Eleris' decision to help Darkland.
As Eleris leaned on me and walked, she spoke with a weak voice.
"I am an ancient Demon King, now forgotten, who once held a place in the long history of Darkland."
An ancient Archdemon.
Eleris was an unimaginably ancient being. That's why she would be an ancestor of the old Valier family.
"It's not a valuable or interesting story. However…"
Eleris spoke in a sorrowful voice.
"I wished for the extinction of humanity."
"Luna Artorious… she said that wars are born from fear."
"I was afraid of humans. I feared and worried that someday their combined strength would be focused on Darkland. While human nations were fighting amongst themselves, as the Demon King, I could gather the power of Darkland. Extinguishing the divided humans before they formed an empire like now… I considered it my duty as the Demon King."
"So… I turned Darkland into hell."
It seemed like she blamed herself.
What had Eleris done during her time as the Demon King?
"In order to create powerful magical beasts, I conducted crossbreeding, and I dabbled in numerous dark arts and necromancy to create mighty homunculi and chimeras. I mobilized the demons to create weapons of war."
"Countless demons were subjected to brutal training due to my judgment, and I turned a blind eye to the numerous lower demons who died from labor and starvation while stockpiling war materials."
"I was the worst Demon King, who sacrificed the most demons while wishing for humanity's extinction and wanting to create a world for demons."
"The rule of the Archdemon, the existence of the Demon King, is horrifying for it unites the demons."
"I didn't see any demons expressing even the slightest dissatisfaction throughout the entire process."
"They all loved me, followed me, and never questioned my will."
"The existence of a Demon King in Darkland is absolute. If a human king did such things, rebellion would soon arise, but no demon could even muster the will to resist the injustice and tyranny originating from me."
"They followed my words out of love for me, and as they died, they cursed themselves for not being able to grow stronger according to my will, and blamed themselves for not being born strong."
"I did not think it was strange."
"I believed it was a necessary sacrifice for the eternal peace of the demon race."
Countless demons were sacrificed for the sake of the greater good of eternal peace.
There was a time, not long after I had met Eleris, when I had said such words.
Perhaps it was when we were on the magic train.
What if we hadn't obsessed over powerful weapons and magic, but instead focused on creating something like this?
I had said such words.
Was that statement not blaming the past Demon King Valier, but rather, blaming her?
Eleris prepared for war.
No demon resisted the Archdemon.
Under the blind loyalty to the Archdemon, they believed the Archdemon's commands to be the truth.
The Archdemon is the very existence of a god to the demons. An unquestionable being, receiving love from all.
"So, you waged war?"
"...No. A rebellion took place."
"...How does a rebellion happen?"
Was there an awakened demon due to the Archdemon's extreme tyranny? Did demons from the outskirts who could escape the Archdemon's control attack? Or did the Vampire Council invade? No, that wouldn't be a rebellion, would it?
At my words, Eleris looks at me with a strained smile.
"There is a demon that an Archdemon can’t control."
"Ah... no way."
"An Archdemon cannot control another Archdemon."
Eleris lowers her gaze.
"I was subdued by my own son, who could not withstand my cruelty, who broke my horn."
A son's rebellion against his mother's tyranny.
The only demon capable of opposing the Archdemon.
It must have been an act only possible for those of the same bloodline.
