The execution of the princess could solve quite a few problems for the empire.
First and foremost, it would temporarily appease the anger of the crowds searching for a scapegoat.
By diverting the negative attention from the Five Great Holy Religions through the princess's execution, they could shift that scrutiny elsewhere.
The vassal kingdoms, unaware of the truth, had also grown distrustful of the empire for harboring the cursed princess. Now, that mistrust could be resolved.
Ultimately, the empire could dispel any suspicions that the royal family had been involved with the Demon King due to their protection of the princess.
Although the execution of Charlotte de Gardias could not physically resolve much, it did address a number of political issues.
Of course, this was only a temporary measure.
As long as the symbol of hatred, the Demon King, remained, only a temporary truce was possible. These issues would inevitably fester and erupt once more.
Even if the empire were to actually execute the princess, it would only buy them time.
It might merely delay the empire's inevitable decline and fall, and the fracturing and collapse of the empire could already be predestined.
Only the emperor knew the true intentions behind this event within the empire.
The people were excited about the simultaneous execution of the Demon King's two minions, oblivious to the real intentions behind it.
However, there were a few who could guess the true motives without the emperor saying anything.
"…Do you think Reinhardt will come?"
"Yes."
Ellen couldn't find anything to say in response to Bertus' words.
Would Reinhardt come, or would he not?
He must come; he has no choice but to come.
Ellen believed that.
But knowing that such a thing would happen, was it right to use Reinhardt like this?
Was it acceptable to exploit Reinhardt so blatantly now that those who once distrusted him have come to trust him?
Even though it wasn't her concern, Ellen couldn't shake off these doubts.
Reinhardt would come.
As he always had, he would try to save Charlotte this time as well.
Was she envious of that?
"…"
She knew it was shameless to hope for that.
But Ellen couldn't help but harbor those thoughts.
—---
The opportunity to bring Charlotte back was created by Bertus, not me.
Moreover, it was an unexpected chance to reclaim Lucinil and Sarkegaar as well.
If I were to take Charlotte, I would have to reveal myself in this situation.
This would involve taking risks and potentially damaging the empire's reputation by having an important figure snatched away by the Demon King during an execution.
Bertus was willing to take on that situation, and I had to take on the risk of rescuing the princess, Lucinil, and Sarkegaar from the heart of the empire.
Three weeks later, on Sunday.
Naturally, the empire's elites were busy trying to resolve the Gate situation.
As a result, the guards protecting the crowded execution grounds and the massive scaffold didn't seem to be of particularly high caliber.
It was undoubtedly an intentionally lax security system.
It was a laughable play.
The emperor orchestrated this event to make the princess flee the empire, and the Demon King agreed to it.
It was amusing that such an agreement had been reached without Bertus and I exchanging a single word.
“Ahhhhhhhhhh!”
However, the crowds, excited by the news of the princess's impending execution, were screaming and cheering.
The scenery of the empire had changed dramatically since I had last seen it.
The people's faces remained the same, but they were all enthralled. As if something would change when the princess died.
I wondered what they would think if the princess was kidnapped by me.
Would they remember Charlotte as an innocent, ignorant girl who was kidnapped twice by the Demon King?
Or would they remember her as the Demon King's accomplice, so important that the Demon King himself had to come to her rescue?
What did Charlotte think of me now?
I didn't know.
All I knew was that I had a job to do.
As I always had.
Bertus wouldn't have too many guards in place for me to take Charlotte, along with Lucinil and Sarkegaar.
If the best of the best were leading this staged execution, some of them might end up dying in a forced fight. That would be a comedy that wasn't even funny.
I would break through the executioners and guards, knock them down just enough, and disappear with a mass teleport.
There was no need to see bloodshed.
I could kill a few people if I had to proclaim myself as the Demon King and unite humanity in fear of me, but I still didn't want to kill people for no reason.
After all, it wasn't an operation that required a large army.
I brought Antirianus and Harriet with me.
Liana, who hated the empire, was not suitable for this kind of job, and neither was Olivia.
"Kill her! Kill the princess!"
The three of us watched from afar as the crowd shouted.
A massive throng of people was engulfed in madness, shouting for the princess's death.
And there they were.
Three figures tied to stakes on top of a pile of wood, dangling from poles.
On the left was the silver-haired girl, Lucinil.
On the right was Sarkegaar, bound with black-feathered wings, taking the form of a demon.
And in the center.
Charlotte, her hair dyed pitch-black, hung her head weakly, tied to the stake.
Not only Sarkegaar, but the thick black mist emanating from the princess's body made everyone realize that she had become a sinister being.
Look at that.
They claimed the princess was cursed.
It wasn't the princess who returned from the Demon King's realm, but a demon disguised as the princess, and now her true form was revealed.
Such cries came from the people.
I didn't know if Sarkegaar and Lucinil understood the situation.
But Charlotte hung her head in resignation.
It wasn't that she was afraid of the people's hatred for her.
It seemed that she was afraid to meet the eyes of the people.
I would save the three of them.
It was an easy task.
All I had to do was break through the crowd, split the stakes, and use the mass teleport to escape.
That's all.
A very simple task.
As I was about to make my move, watching the crowd from afar.
"We have a problem."
Harriet grabbed the hem of my robe.
"A problem...?"
Harriet's face, visible through the inside of my robe, turned pale, indicating a serious issue.
"The spatial coordinates of this entire square are distorted."
"What? What does that mean?"
Similarly, Antirianus, who was also wearing a robe, looked at me and showed a faint smile.
"Your Greatness, it means that a barrier has been formed across this entire square, blocking spatial movement."
"...What?"
What on earth...
What kind of nonsense is this?
If a space-blocking barrier is set up across the entire area, I can't choose to break through, save the three of them, and then immediately escape using a mass teleport scroll.
I have to break through the crowd – Somehow, they had to break through this crowd.
Why on earth did Bertus set up such defenses?
Could it be that Bertus really intended to kill Charlotte?
There's no way he would do that, right?
Antirianus began to chuckle.
"Heh... it seems we were not the only ones who had various thoughts during the time given to us."
Another power.
"Is it not possible that others sensed the Demon King would appear here?"
Did completely unrelated people interfere in this situation?
"O great one, what will you do?"
Antirianus laughed.
When he told me this story, had Antirianus already sensed that something like this would happen?
He deliberately didn't tell me.
"This... crazy old man..."
As if he had received a compliment, Antirianus only laughed even more deeply.
The Emperor did not go to the execution ground.
He simply watched the scene from the high spire of the palace wall, magnifying the view.
There was no reason for him to carry out the execution himself, and he did not have the confidence to face Reinhardt at the site.
From a distance, the only thing Bertus could do was watch Reinhardt save Charlotte.
The angry and hateful cheers from the boiling crowd in the plaza were audible to Bertus.
So much hatred.
Why do they hate this much?
Why?
Bertus clenched his teeth as he watched the scene.
Waiting for Reinhardt to appear.
If he didn't show up, waiting to execute the next plan.
"Your Majesty, there seems to be a problem."
"...A problem?"
"We don't know who set it up, but a spatial movement barrier has been formed throughout the area around the plaza."
"...What?"
Bertus's complexion turned ashen at the words of the royal magician guarding him.
Reinhardt's thoughts and Bertus's thoughts were not very different.
Bertus knew that Reinhardt had many highly skilled magicians.
That's why he thought it would be a simple matter of breaking into the scene and escaping via teleport.
If Reinhardt appeared, everything would be resolved.
There was no need for a big fight, a conflict, and Bertus was certain Reinhardt wouldn't cause a large-scale massacre.
However, the presence of the spatial movement barrier meant that even if Reinhardt appeared, he would have to break through the crowd to escape beyond the barrier.
If Reinhardt tried to force his way through the crowd, a massive slaughter would ensue.
Bertus knew Reinhardt wouldn't want that.
"Who are these bastards..."
"I apologize, Your Majesty. At this distance, we can't determine who installed it or for what purpose."
The distance was too great.
Reinhardt wouldn't do such a thing, and Bertus hadn't ordered it.
That meant another power had interfered.
"What kind of bastards... realized that the Demon King would come here..."
In the end, placing Charlotte and two of the Demon King's subordinates on the execution ground had become bait to lure the Demon King here.
"Do they... want to kill the Demon King... Reinhardt?"
Installing the spatial movement barrier meant they wanted to kill him without giving him a chance to escape once he revealed himself.
Just as Bertus noticed, if Reinhardt was really there, he would have no choice but to realize this situation.
Although it wasn't a trap he set, the situation had effectively become a trap.
It was impossible to know who they were, but the moment the Demon King revealed himself, the ambush would begin.
Considering the enemy had likely made thorough preparations, it would be a wise and natural decision for Reinhardt to retreat from this place.
Bertus clenched his teeth.
Only a handful knew that today's execution was a ploy to lure the Demon King and take the Imperial Princess away.
Naturally, the executioners were not aware of this intent.
If Reinhardt withdrew, the execution would proceed as scheduled.
Even if they did not die in the flames of the pyre, the executioners would surely find a way to end the lives of the Demon King's two minions and the Imperial Princess.
If Reinhardt stepped forward, he would be ambushed.
But if Reinhardt retreated, the Demon King's two minions and Charlotte would die.
"Who the hell... are these bastards...?"
With his eyes wide open, Bertus observed the boiling rage and madness that filled the square.
—---
“Aaaaaah!”
“Kill them! Kill them!”
“Kill the filthy demons!”
Amidst the madness and anger, I silently stared at Antirianus. Herriet's face was pale, and she could only bite her lips.
"Did you know it would come to this?"
"How can I casually predict the future, oh great one?"
"You knew this would happen, but you didn't tell me, did you?"
"Of course, but..."
He didn't even try to hide his malice.
What I thought was a simple problem turned out to be a terrible fork in the road, presenting two dreadful choices.
Knowing that the planned ambush would start, should I dive into the scene, save Charlotte, break through the crowd, and flee?
Or should I stand by and watch as Charlotte, Lucinil, and Sarkegaar die?
Antirianus enjoys putting me in such situations.
That monster would be satisfied with whatever choice I made.
He would take pleasure in watching me die from foolish attachment if I chose the first option.
He would also be delighted if I succeeded in rescuing the three of them by choosing the first option.
And he would enjoy watching me despair in the reality where I had to exchange my life for theirs if I chose the second option.
He enjoyed driving me to the extreme, regardless of what I did.
Antirianus did not advise me on the aspects I hadn't considered.
He wanted me to arrive at this place without knowing, so he could enjoy it.
“Aaaaaaaaaah!”
As the angry crowd roared, the execution was about to commence.
Would I die if I went in?
If I, an Archdemon, were to die for the sake of saving Charlotte and the other two, what would become of Edina Archipelago?
Without an Archdemon, the Edina Archipelago's control system would not be sustainable.
No, I might not even be able to save the three of them, and the Demon King could die like a fool alongside them.
I don't know who's planning to ambush me.
I haven't even reached the Master level yet.
So, I shouldn't do it.
I know.
I shouldn't save them.
Too many lives and destinies are at stake for the sake of just one life, mine.
I would be weighing the lives of millions against saving only three.
Even if I could actually save them, a ruler should not risk their life in such matters.
A ruler is meant to command, not to wield a sword.
This is reckless.
But.
If I hadn't done those reckless things, if I had lived like that,
I would never have been able to stand up to my seniors.
I wouldn't have fought a duel with my senior.
From that point on, countless reckless acts had led me here, ultimately reaching the seat of the Demon King. Had I not acted in such a way, this great achievement could not have been mine.
I would not have had the numerous relationships that I did, and consequently, I would not have had relationships that I had to lose.
There would have been no relationships I wanted to regain.
It is right not to engage in reckless acts.
However, standing atop the mountain built upon my recklessness, I cannot help but think that refraining from something due to its recklessness is merely an excuse for complacency.
That would be cowardly.
It would be nothing more than defeatism.
I, who had been reckless, had completed the person I am now solely through recklessness.
I cannot say that I must not do this because it is too reckless.
A ruler should not engage in such acts.
A ruler bears too much responsibility to risk their life in such affairs.
One must abandon what needs to be abandoned.
And take what needs to be taken.
That is the only way.
However, I have never believed that I was a fitting ruler.
I have never done anything because I thought I could.
I did it because I had to.
I have always thought that I must do it.
I never believed that everything would work out somehow.
It was not because I thought everything was possible that I undertook every task.
“Waaaaah!”
The scream continued.
"I'll go alone."
As I look at the enraged crowd, I take a step forward.
"Harriet, neutralize the teleportation interference."
"Yeah... I'll try."
"Antirianus, provide long-range support."
"Yes, Your Greatness."
Charlotte de Gardias.
Sarkegaar.
Lucinil.
Today, I will save you all.
This time, and the next.
Always.
I will save you all.
That is the path of the ruler I choose to follow.
