Demon King of the Royal Class-Chapter 444

In an alley somewhere in the imperial capital...

“Effenhauser. Why aren’t you complying with the Order’s decision?”

“...”

Effenhauser listened silently to the woman in the black robe, who was leaning against the alley wall.

“It is almost certain that the Council possesses Akasha,” she said. “I told you to track Akasha down using the head of the Wednesday clan.”

“We still don’t know what exactly Akasha is,” Effenhauser replied.

In response to Effenhauser’s brief answer, the woman in the black robe quietly wiggled her white fingers.

“Isn’t that something we can think about after we secure Akasha?”

“If we recklessly provoke the head of the Wednesday clan, the Council might feel threatened and use Akasha.”

“...”

The original purpose of the Black Order was not to secure Akasha but to annihilate Cantus Magna. After the battle at the lich’s tomb, the Council had severed contact with the Black Order.

Maintaining their alliance was no longer possible.

It was clear that they had achieved their goal and had withdrawn at an appropriate time. That was not particularly unreasonable, since alliances were often meant to last only as long as the mutual interests of both parties aligned.

However, the Order was now trying to respond to the new threat of Akasha.

The only lead they had was Lucinil, who had infiltrated the Temple as a first-year student. However, Effenhauser, who was an insider at the Temple, was currently ignoring the Order’s commands to confront Lucinil and find the whereabouts of Akasha.

The Black Order couldn’t help but doubt Effenhauser’s intentions.

“Effenhauser, surely your heart isn’t leaning towards the Demon King, is it?”

Effenhauser remained silent.

“The Order fully agreed with your opinion that the Demon King was more necessary than anyone else for the cohesion and preservation of the empire. That’s why we did not kill the Demon King and kept him alive.”

“...”

“However, that opinion was only valid while the Demon King was weak and had an excessively small force. Your opinion was right back then, but the situation has changed.”

Still, Effenhauser remained silent.

“The Demon King will soon die. No—if he survives like this, the problem will grow bigger. The Demon King can no longer be considered weak. He can cause numerous political divisions within the empire, and can summon a powerful force at his whim. Moreover, he even possesses Akasha.

“The Demon King, by his very existence, is already a portent of great division, and will be the trigger for the empire’s collapse. The Demon King will be left to die as he is, and if he survives, the Order will take action.

“So, Effenhauser, your focus must be on securing Akasha, which is the biggest threat. The only lead we have is the head of the Wednesday clan. The Order exists for the survival of the empire and humanity. Have you forgotten the most important thing, Effenhauser?”

Effenhauser shook his head. “I have not forgotten.”

“Then why are you not complying with the Order’s commands?”

The Black Order existed for the sake of order.

They existed to ensure order for the empire and humanity.

They supported the empire from the shadows, doing the dirty work, and sometimes committing heinous acts that were socially unacceptable, all to sustain the empire.

Cooperating with the Demon King for the sake of the empire was one of the contradictory actions undertaken by the Order.

The Demon King would inevitably be a significant threat to the empire. However, an excessively weak Demon King was actually useful. For an empire that was showing signs of division after the Great War, such an abstract enemy was necessary. Although it appeared as though another great shadow loomed over humanity, in reality, the Demon King was merely weak.

The Order had chosen to watch over such a Demon King rather than eliminate him. Allying themselves with him so that they could observe the scale of his forces had been the most accurate approach.

According to the reports Effenhauser had sent, it was almost certain that the Demon King harbored no particular hostility or malice towards humanity.

A Demon King who did not antagonize humanity, yet whose existence was undeniable. Such a Demon King was the most necessary existence for humanity and the empire. However, as the Demon King began to secure holy relics, the atmosphere started to change.

The narrative had shifted when the Order’s other secret wish, the destruction of Cantus Magna, came into play. The Demon King’s usefulness disappeared. More precisely, the existence of the Demon King itself had become too dangerous.

Reinhart was a weak Demon King, which suited the Order. Whenever the threat of division within the empire heightened, having the Demon King appear at an appropriate place once would cause a terrified humanity to cling tightly together.

The Order knew that the Demon King did not have much animosity towards humanity and even sought coexistence, and that he was not particularly enthusiastic about rebuilding the Demon Realm. However, despite those intentions, the Demon King had become a champion chosen by the gods, and had come into possession of Akasha, a very dangerous artifact.

On top of that, a faction of humans who followed the Demon King, the demon god cultists, had emerged.

The Order knew that the Demon King’s existence was harmless, but they did not approach the situation with that perspective alone. The symbol of the Demon King had become too dangerous, and therefore, he would have to be eliminated.

Akasha was also a dangerous artifact, and therefore, it had to be secured.

The first of these two tasks would be handled by the empire itself. Therefore, the Black Order would focus on the second task of securing Akasha. Yet Effenhauser, one of the most crucial members within the Temple, was not complying.

“I just think we need to adopt a cautious approach when it comes to a bomb that could destroy the world from anywhere,” Effenhauser said.

There was logic in Effenhauser’s words. If they recklessly captured and tortured the head of the Wednesday clan to forcibly learn Akasha’s location, the Council might make an extreme choice.

“... Keep in mind, Effenhauser, that the passage of time does not work in our favor.”

“I will keep it in mind.”

Swoosh.

As the woman in the black robe disappeared, Effenhauser returned to the main road and headed towards the Temple.

As always, Effenhauser was dressed neatly, his face expressionless to the point of being excessively austere.

The morality of existence and intention was irrelevant. The goal was to eliminate threats to the empire and promote its survival, even if it was not the intention and will of the empire. The Black Order, a willing pillar supporting the empire from the shadows, existed for that purpose.

Some lower-ranking members did not know the true intentions of this Black Order. They were merely flies, receiving orders and executing them, coveting the power the Order granted them in return for carrying out those orders.

However, Effenhauser was not one of those flies. Passing through the Temple’s gate, Effenhauser walked through the still-chaotic Temple grounds.

The Demon King himself, as well as his forces, were supposed to be weak and small in scale. The reason the Order had cooperated with the Demon King was to closely observe his growth and deal with him when the situation crossed the line.

That line had since been crossed. The empire would handle the Demon King’s life, so the Order had to deal with Akasha.

Taking the tram to the Royal Class dormitory, Effenhauser quietly summoned Lucinil, a first-year student, to him.

This content is taken from fгeewebnovёl.com.

The silver-haired kid, head of the Wednesday clan... Effenhauser sometimes thought that the Demon King’s forces seemed to consist only of airheaded individuals, just like the Demon King himself.

Lucinil had remained at the Temple to understand the internal dynamics of the empire. Given the situation, she did not seem thrilled.

“What’s the matter?” she asked.

She and Effenhauser were the only point of contact between the Council and the Order. Lucinil was understandably tense.

If Effenhauser acted aggressively, Lucinil would have to respond. Lucinil couldn’t leave the Temple despite the Demon King’s exposure because she needed to keep an eye on the situation around the place where Baalier was being imprisoned.

“Do you have Akasha?” Effenhauser asked.

Lucinil remained silent and slowly stepped away.

“What is Akasha?” Effenhauser asked again.

“...”

“What do you plan to do with Akasha?” Effenhauser asked, not making any attempt to approach Lucinil.

The girl responded with something entirely different. “Will you be on our side?” she asked.

Effenhauser shook his head. “No. We can no longer be on your side, regardless of the Akasha issue.”

There had been no reason to say that, but Effenhauser said it anyway.

“Then, I have no reason to tell you,” Lucinil replied.

“The Order has instructed me to use force to learn the whereabouts of Akasha from you.”

“... And you think that will be possible?”

The head of the Wednesday clan and an ancient vampire... Lucinil looked at Effenhauser with a gaze full of hostility.

“I don’t necessarily think it’s impossible.” Unlike the wary Lucinil, Effenhauser’s gaze remained calm. “However, I’m just telling you what the Order wants.”

Lucinil’s eyes widened at Effenhauser’s unexpected words. “What?”

The Black Order comprised individuals who were willing to work for good through shadowy means. This good did not refer to an absolute good, but good for humanity’s sake.

However, Effenhauser had seen it, though only briefly. A boy with a foul temper. He had watched that boy, who had started with nothing, grit his teeth and grow.

He had seen the boy struggle not to break under trivial justice and trivial beliefs. He knew that the boy was the Demon King and saw that, despite what he had gone through, he did not hate humanity.

On the contrary, he had seen him love humans and sometimes try to save them. Though he was not afforded a front-row seat, he had observed the Demon King’s growth as a teacher. He saw him somehow accomplish what he set his mind to and climb upward, ever upward, not so much different from any other human.

The Order was a group that worked for good using evil means. It was an organization that had to work in the shadows while serving the good of the empire, without recognition, even though they had to resort to deeds so cursed that they should not be spoken of.

Therefore, the most important thing for the Order’s members was pride. Even while committing acts that could not be rationalized, they had to have the pride and conviction to carry them out.

However, Effenhauser had seen a being who had every right to hate humanity, a being for whom it was physically and logically impossible not to hate humanity, love humanity more than anyone else. That was an impossible thing.

The Demon King had shown him that the impossible was possible.

How deep was that being’s pride and conviction? Effenhauser could not fathom it.

He who did not hate humanity would have to die, bearing all the hatred inside him. Without achieving anything or receiving anyone’s sympathy. Without being understood by anyone he loved, bearing all his pride, his conviction, and the wishes that could not be known to anyone.

He would die under the stigma of being a traitor and deceiver in a world where such pride had to be broken. In a world where such conviction had to be insulted.

If such a being had to die miserably without achieving anything, then what was pride, and what was conviction?

If the being with the greatest conviction and pride in the world had to be obliterated, what value did these things have? What meaning did they have?

He, too, had lived his entire life with only conviction and pride.

If someone with greater pride than himself, who had tried to act with forgiveness and promote harmony rather than evil, had to die in such a manner... If he had to die in infamy and disgrace, without anyone understanding him... If that was the world he lived in and if that was the will of the gods, then both the gods and the world were worthless.

People’s misunderstanding, because it was a misunderstanding, had led them to hate the boy.

And someone’s misunderstanding, because it was a misunderstanding, had led them to be inspired by the boy.

And thus...

“The Order cannot be on your side, but I think I can be on your side,” Effenhauser said.

***

Because of Olivia Lanche’s disruption of the proceedings, the empire found itself in a situation in which it could not lay a hand on the Demon King.

Any decision regarding the Demon King had to be discussed with the Church of the Five Great Gods first.

Olivia Lanche’s plan to stall for time was a great success. Following all that Olivia had said, rumors spread rapidly throughout the imperial capital.

These rumors revealed that Reinhart, who was known to have been chosen by Alsbringer, was the Demon King himself, and that same Demon King had been captured.

Stories circulated that the Demon King had infiltrated the human world, and the truth that this Demon King had been chosen by Alsbringer brought with it shock and confusion.

The capture of the Demon King should have been a relief, but since the gods could not have been unaware of the truth, the fact that a holy relic had been bestowed upon the Demon King implied that the gods had intended it all along. Moreover, this relic was humanity’s most prized possession. The sword of the hero who had slain the father now rested in the hands of the son.

What was Alse planning? Did the God of War, true to his name, desire a great war?

What did the gods want? Had the gods abandoned humanity?

Why had they forsaken humanity and chosen the demons, and their king at that?

Despite the Demon King’s capture, fear and confusion reigned.

At the Temple during breakfast time...

“You knew, didn’t you?” Riana de Granz said, looking at Harriet.

Harriet could only remain silent, bowing her head like a sinner in front of Riana.

Ellen and Harriet had been acting strangely lately, and Riana had finally understood the reason for that strange behavior.

She nodded quietly. The Demon King who had killed Duke Granz was Reinhart. He had even attended the funeral.

“Harriet, let’s talk later.”

“H-huh? Ah... okay...”

Harriet quietly watched as the tip of the fork in Riana’s hand turned bright red.