This suffocating tension rose up. In response to Count Fabius’s smile, Duke Bamford skipped the greetings and went straight to the point.
“You know why I asked for a talk. The Continental Law strictly forbids the use of poison to cause indiscriminate slaughter during the war. It’s the minimum conscience one has promised to another human being. Then why did Roman Dmitry use poison? Didn’t you think about the consequences that would come from the war?”
When talking about conscience, they didn’t say Dmitry was wrong. No, in the first place, including the preemptive strike, the Kronos Empire didn’t think that anything was wrong with them.
This was war. Just like Hector’s surprise of crossing the borders, the way Kronos attacked Dmitry had happened over and over throughout history, even if it was against Continental Law.
But using poison was different. The reason they didn’t actively use poison even though they had the Behemoth Magic Tower was because they couldn’t discriminate against the enemies.
In addition, it wasn’t easy to avoid civilians mixed with soldiers in the realm of reckless massacre.
So the Duke showed his anger. He made a statement of refusal, as if someone like Dmitry was using poison that even Kronos didn’t use.
Count Fabius said,
“I know what you mean, but that is just your words. Do we have an obligation to follow them at all costs? Just as it doesn’t matter in the name of ‘war’ even if you cross the border without notice. We just thought the use of poison was an extension of our rights.”
“Count Fabius. From now on, make sure to say each word carefully.”
Duke Bamford’s expression turned red. As he watched the soldiers, around 10,000, die, he couldn’t control his anger.
Kronos was his nation. In this world ruled by emperors, he had only obtained the title of Duke because of the dedication he had shown to this nation.
Duke Bamford didn’t even bother to hide his anger.
“Every law in the world, including Continental Law, usually has a starting point that led to its creation. Count Fabius, why do you think the people of the Salamander continent banned poison even at war?”
“Well, shouldn’t there be a historical event?”
“Right. A very long time ago, before Kronos had the title of an empire, there were more kingdoms in the world than there are now. How did they die? In an attempt to claim the land of the other, they would use horrifying poison that resulted in the deaths of the three nations involved in the war, with 30 percent of the population dying. How many civilians do you think that includes? The part of responsibility that I ask you to hold is not to repeat the past. As a human, if you abandon your last conscience, do you think you can handle the war against Kronos? Our way of cruelty isn’t as cruel as yours.”
He was right. If the opponent wasn’t the Kronos Empire, Count Fabius might have nodded at his words. However…
“Yes, yes, I understand. I don’t even care about the past, so what? Are you asking us to lay our heads down and just die? As humans, do we need to have a conscience? I am sorry, but I don’t want to hear such words from the Kronos Empire that pushed Dmitry into this corner.”
Fabius’s reaction was a real shock.
The opponent was Kronos, which held huge strength. People who heard rumors about Count Fabius were sure that he, who was called a traitor, would wag his tail for Kronos.
Some were right. If the situation and time were right, he would always turn around and swear allegiance to Kronos, but the person he was following was Roman Dmitry.
It was a betrayal. However, he had to do his best as if he would give up his life for his new Lord. It was his life’s motto.
For Count Fabius, who had a liking for Roman Dmitry, the Kronos Empire was just one of his many enemies.
Count Fabius said,
“The countries whose population of 30% was destroyed were later absorbed into the Kronos Empire and turned into a foundation for your land. In the end, it can be said that the past event has benefited Kronos.”
“…what do you mean?”
“No, I was just telling the facts. And frankly, shouldn’t the Kronos Empire not point out the use of poison, even if the other nations use it? Everyone in the world knows that Kronos uses ‘black magic.’ Especially this time, when my Lord was returning to Dmitry, Kronos openly used black magic. Black magic is worse than poison. If poison is a child’s play, black magic is the kind of power that can destroy the entire human race.”
His attitude was perverse. He didn’t want a smooth conversation from the start.
“We are giving back what we suffered. Even if this is an issue, I am not going to apologize.”
“Count Fabius.”
“Yes, please.”
“Is there evidence that the Kronos Empire used black magic? Not just words, but evidence with proof. There is no evidence anywhere that the attack on Roman Dmitry on his way back was the work of Kronos. His Majesty had spoken of the assassination of Roman Dmitry, but that and what happened are different things.”
“Ah, you think so?”
Fabius smiled and then laughed.
Kronos was such a nation. Even though everyone knew that the shadows belonged to them, they forced everyone to turn a blind eye.
“Yes, there is nothing wrong with Kronos. You tried to assassinate the Lord and attack with the shadows, then you used black magic and attacked the Dmitry estate. But in the end, Dmitry, who used poison, must have been at fault. So what do you want us to do? Didn’t you get an army to destroy us? If humans lose a war, it’s hard for us to survive. Regardless of how Kronos has acted so far, we have only chosen the way we live. So let’s just accept this. Kronos’s black magic and Dmitry’s poison. Isn’t it a good idea to talk about each other’s conscience? If we turn to take this path, let us not dwell on things like this when we are running to our deaths.”
“How dare…?!”
“And.”
Count Fabius was serious now.
“And shouldn’t Duke Bamford know it well? The poison used by the Lord isn’t easy to break down, even with the Behemoth Magic Tower. If he had wished for a senseless massacre, we would have used poison in the middle of the capital. So do not talk shit. We are staying within our own lines. If you want each of us to reach an end, there is no guarantee what will happen from now on.”
It was an obvious threat.
And he made a bold attempt. Count Fabius bared his teeth against the representative of Kronos.
The mood had changed.
At Count Fabius’s remarks, Duke Bamford, who was showing his rage, suddenly went silent.
“I get it. Let’s accept each other’s responsibilities and finish this matter.”
The threat worked. Fabius made a remark that they could use the poison in the capital to buy time, which would have halted everything in Kronos.
At least until the thirty-two poisons could be cured. As for them, they had no choice but to move more than before, worrying about the possible use of poison.
But Duke Bamford said,
“Perhaps Dmitry has a plausible plan that made him decide on the war, and Roman Dmitry exists at the center of it. I will admit it, honestly. We didn’t expect you to launch a surprise attack on Rascal, slaughter 10,000 troops, and then poison 100,000 troops.”
He admired him. Looking at Roman Dmitry’s progress, he imagined how amazing it would be if he sided with the Kronos Empire.
It was an amazing future.
If a being like Roman Dmitry had the wings of Kronos behind him, his ambition to conquer the continent would have been faster.
He was unique. The Duke hoped that there would be hardships in the process of conquering the continent.
“At one point, I also spent a lot of time on the battlefield, and I only felt alive after winning all those wars and being given the title of Duke. To be honest, I am still uncomfortable with the clothes the nobles wear. Duke Bamford, as they say, is more used to life on the battlefield than in the capital. Do you know why I left the battlefield? Because I am old? Because the wars are less frequent than before? Not at all.”
Their topic deviated, and Duke Bamford showed the truth to an insignificant being.
“It’s because I know the strength of the Kronos Empire. How strong is this nation? The fact that the reward of victory would have originally followed us without raising a fuss meant that, from then on, I lived a life far from war. Roman Dmitry. An amazing man. Born in a far-off land, he reached the level of 6-stars at a young age, and his actions so far are so much greater than we assumed. But that is all. No one who knows Kronos’s military power thinks of Roman Dmitry as an existence that can stand in the way of Kronos’s ambitions. But we are just looking forward to it.”
He laughed.
Recalling the source of the confidence that Fabius believed in, he looked shocked.
“The stronger Roman Dmitry is, the stronger we will also be. The more he fights, the more we fight back Dmitry. Even if that one place collapses, the people of the continent will have no choice but to admit that the Kronos Empire has the right to rule the continent. So please stick to the very end. To make me feel alive.”
Finally.
“I truly looked forward to a good fight.”
Then the Duke turned around and went back to his camp.
At that time in Dmitry, Hans thoroughly wiped the bodies of the patients lying like corpses with a warm, damp towel.
“…when did you grow up this much?”
He looked at Kevin. He had taken off his shirt to wipe his body, and his body was full of wounds.
There were even new wounds that formed during this war, but most were from the previous war. There were other wounds on top of other wounds. Just looking at all those wounds showed how much effort he put in.
This feeling was new. Even when he first met Kevin, he couldn’t find any qualifications for a swordsman in him, even though he had the passion, but now he suddenly grew so much that he could be recognized by the continent.
In particular, in the process of defeating Sven, Kevin made the greatest contribution. If he hadn’t stopped Sven for that long, there would have been more casualties. Everyone knew it.
Why did Kevin sacrifice himself? With a strong desire to protect Dmitry, everyone hoped that Kevin would wake up.
And next to him was Henderson. Kevin still seemed to have recovered, but Henderson could be called a living corpse. He was in a state in which it wouldn’t be strange if he died now.
Every day, the family of Henderson would come over and shed tears, but they never said one bad thing about Roman Dmitry. For Kevin and Henderson’s survival, Roman Dmitry did his best.
Knowing his intentions, they were thankful. It was heartbreaking. When he looked at them, tears welled up for no reason.
Then he got up. Since he didn’t know when the guests might come, he tried to clean the surroundings so they wouldn’t feel uncomfortable.
It was good to be busy working when sad emotions were inside of him. That was the way Hans lived. So he tried to forget about his sadness by focusing on cleaning.
And when he was about to get up, he heard a familiar voice from behind.
“…how long has it been?”
Came a muffled voice. Then Hans turned his head.
Right at that moment,
“Kevin!”
Kevin, who stood up with a concerned look, was looking at Hans.
