Demon King of the Royal Class-Chapter 527

Charlotte couldn’t believe what she’d just heard about how Heinrich von Schwartz was soon going to be assassinated. It seemed absurd, but I had just told her that it would happen.

‘Yes, I know it’s ridiculous, but it’s going to happen! And yes, I acknowledge that it’s all my fault!’

“Just assume it’s going to happen, and tell me what you think,” I said.

“Okay.”

Heinrich was going to die while on a regular mission, but his death would be disguised to look as if it had been caused by monsters, rather than an obvious assassination.

Even in the original story, Heinrich was an annoying character, but his importance grew as the story developed. His death would shock the entire Allied Forces and unsettle the Royal Class.

Ludwig would notice something strange when observing Heinrich’s funeral, hastily conducted by the Kernstadt royal family. He would report this to Vertus and be granted the authority to investigate the matter discreetly.

While the Allied Forces mourned, Ludwig would investigate the suspicious aspects of the case and, with the help of several people, discover that Heinrich’s death had been sanctioned by the Kernstadt royal family.

After that incident, Vertus, enraged by the petty politics causing such a mess during these times, would execute the Kernstadt royals and forcibly integrate them into the empire’s command structure.

In the original timeline, Vertus acted as the emperor’s proxy and the commander-in-chief of the Allied Forces. However, since the late Emperor Nelliode de Gradias had died and Vertus was the current emperor, he couldn’t leave the capital permanently, and was instead shuttling between the capital and the Allied Forces’ encampment.

Originally, the execution of the Kernstadt royal family received significant backlash from within the Kernstadt army, with many even considering desertion.

Faced with that situation, Ludwig made a strong appeal to the Kernstadt army not to abandon the war that would decide humanity’s fate.

In the original story, Ludwig possessed Alsbringer, and was a strong symbolic figure. He managed to convince the Kernstadt army to continue to serve in the Allied Forces and support the greater cause.

If things were left as they were, Heinrich would die. He was not only a classmate but also a significant chunk of the allied army’s strength. The loss of such a powerful combatant would cause the Allied Forces to fracture, before being patched up again.

Although the forces of Kernstadt would continue to serve with the rest of humanity thanks to Ludwig’s persuasiveness and for the greater good, the friction between the imperial and Kernstadt forces would remain a point of friction within the Allied Forces.

There was nothing good about this event occurring, and therefore, I hoped that it could be avoided altogether. I had sent a letter to Heinrich to warn him, but I wasn’t sure if it would be effective.

“Let’s assume that Heinrich is about to be assassinated. I want to find a way out of this so that Heinrich does not die, and the Allied Forces do not suffer a significant blow. Is that possible?”

Contacting Heinrich directly seemed like a bad idea. He wouldn’t trust me. What if I killed all of Heinrich’s older siblings? That alone would sow enormous chaos within the command structure.

If I personally intervened, the world would learn that the Demon King appeared within the Allied Forces’ encampment and killed the Kernstadt royals.

The hatred that the Allied Forces bore towards me would skyrocket, and anxiety would spread within the army, with every soldier fearing the next attack by the Demon King.

Moreover, if I did such a thing, Heinrich would never forgive me for killing his family. He would never know that he would have died if I hadn’t killed them. I might have to consider it as a last resort, But I knew it was hardly the best option, and not even a good one.

No matter how I did it, the hatred towards me would skyrocket. If that happened, then having Heinrich also see me as an enemy would not really make my burden any heavier, but there was no need to deliberately take on all that hatred.

While it was possible to disguise it as someone else’s doing, either by using Sarkegar or the ring I had, an assassination of certain individuals within the Allied Forces would ultimately cause an uproar and slow down their advance.

The command structure would have to be reorganized, and if the leadership of the Allied Forces assumed command of the Kernstadt army as in the original story, problems would arise.

It would not be enough even if lower-level commanders of the Kernstadt army rose to command their army on their own. And if Heinrich, the sole heir of Kernstadt, took over the command, the problem would still persist. He was strong, but he had no experience or talent for leadership.

The three that were trying to kill Heinrich were useful in their own way. If left alone, they would eventually cause trouble, but for the moment, they were doing their jobs well. They were indispensable elements of the army, and removing them would cause problems.

Removing them was easy, but the problems that would arise afterward would lead to more issues. The goal was to resolve this incident without any noise, without Heinrich dying, and without causing significant trouble within the Allied Forces.

Was that even possible? I had sought Charlotte out because I couldn’t think of anything else.

“Hmm... I don’t know the situation surrounding the Allied Forces well, but I think I understand what you’re thinking, Reinhart,” Charlotte said, seriously contemplating my question.

She inclined her head. “Since, given the situation, Heinrich would naturally stand out, it would also be natural for his siblings to grow nervous. They might want to eliminate him before he becomes a bigger threat... That doesn’t seem entirely impossible.”

After a pause, she added, “But can we be sure that such a thing will happen?”

It was a possibility, but there was no guarantee it would happen.

“If it’s an assassination,” she continued, “it would likely be disguised so that it seems as though he died while on a mission... But is the Schwartz royal family really that reckless and stupid?”

I couldn’t help but agree with Charlotte. It was indeed a foolish act.

The Gate Incident wasn’t even resolved, yet Heinrich, a powerful asset, was going to be killed by his siblings for being too outstanding.

In the original story, Vertus was beyond angry at this. He was utterly dumbfounded. The Kernstadt royal siblings had killed one of the most crucial assets of the Allied Forces in a power struggle. That was why Vertus lost his temper and used his authority as commander-in-chief to execute all the Kernstadt royals. He judged that it was better to kill them and deal with the fallout than to fight a war with such lunatics.

The Allied Forces would nearly crumble, but thanks to Ludwig, they would not reach a breaking point.

Charlotte, however, seemed to believe that such a foolish situation would not play out.

“Yeah, it might just be a possibility, but there’s no harm in thinking about how to prevent it, right? A loss to the Allied Forces is our loss too.”

“That’s true. So, assuming the situation unfolds in this way and that an assassination attempt is indeed being planned... By the time this war is properly concluded, Heinrich would have ascended to such a high position that the Kernstadt royal family would not be able to touch him... In that case, it’s not entirely impossible.”

“Hmm, that’s true. He’d be treated almost like a hero on par with Ellen.”

Ellen held exceptionally high status, but Heinrich wasn’t far behind. Frankly, the original protagonist, Ludwig, had nowhere near Heinrich’s level of fame as things stood.

By the time the Gate Incident was resolved and humanity’s reconstruction efforts began in earnest, Heinrich would be regarded as an unparalleled hero not only in Kernstadt, but wherever on the continent where humanity had survived.

“In that case, even if Heinrich doesn’t want to be king, he might have to become one.”

“Yeah... That seems possible.”

In dark times, symbols held great power. Heinrich, the youngest of the Kernstadt royal family, might be forced onto the throne almost against his will.

If he survived, he would hold such influence that he would have to become king, whether he liked it or not. His siblings, feeling wronged and resentful about losing the throne to a younger sibling, might try to kill him before he became too famous for them to handle.

Charlotte seemed to see enough possibility for that to happen.

“The important thing isn’t whether Heinrich’s assassination happens or not, but how to prevent it if it does...”

Charlotte furrowed her brow in thought.

“Going through Vertus seems to be the easiest way to resolve it, but that means Heinrich might become a symbol of the empire only... In other words, he would have to cut ties with Kernstadt completely. He would only have to persuade Heinrich, so the status quo would be maintained. But there’s a risk.”

“Approaching Vertus itself is a risk... But if there’s no other way, it can’t be helped.”

Charlotte shook her head. “That’s not the only risk.”

‘Approaching Vertus isn’t the only risky part?’

“The Schwartz royal family might see it as interference in their internal affairs.”

“... Offer to pull out a sore tooth, and they might get angry instead?”

“Of course.” Charlotte sighed. “Kernstadt is the empire’s primary vassal state.”

“... Right.”

“Don’t you remember the Orbis Class?”

“Oh.”

The Orbis Class was also participating in humanity’s efforts against the Gate Incident. Although the class had been disbanded, the people who made it up still remained and so many of the students from the Orbis Class would still be with the Temple’s forces.

Anyway, one of the many major incidents I’d caused was the dissolution of the Orbis Class.

The relationship between the Orbis Class and the Royal Class could be summed up in one phrase: an inferiority complex. One was eternally first, and the other was forever second.

The empire and Kernstadt were like that too, it seemed.

“Kernstadt is the closest nation to the empire, so the people bristle at being seen as inferior to the empire and its people. How much greater then must this inferiority complex be when it comes to the Schwartz royal family’s inferiority?”

“Oh... I see.”

The closest nation to the empire ultimately harbored the strongest desire to become the empire. To be precise, the Schwartz royal family of Kernstadt envied and felt inferior to the Gradias imperial family more than any other.

“The empire has not operated smoothly all this time. It’s just not recorded in history. Do you know how many times the Schwartz royal family tried to overthrow the empire?”

Humanity faced common enemies, and that was why the empire had been created. But that didn’t mean there was no discord within the nations of humanity. As a princess, Charlotte would know many of these unrecorded intrigues and schemes.

“The most important thing for the emperor is to maintain a relationship with Kernstadt that is neither too distant nor too close. That is the most important diplomatic target, since they are both a potential enemy yet the most important ally.”

Kernstadt was important to the empire, both in a good and bad sense.

“Leaving aside the danger of us approaching Vertus, if Vertus removes Heinrich from the Kernstadt royal family and incorporates him into the empire as a figurehead, it could be seen as the empire trying to swallow the Schwartz royal family. Naturally, they’d see it as interference in their internal affairs and resist it.”

“Wouldn’t they be happy if a strong contender for the throne voluntarily gave up any claims to succession, even if they hate the empire?”

Charlotte shook her head at my words.

“Reinhart, this isn’t about gestures or possibilities; it’s actually possible for Vertus to use Heinrich to swallow up the Schwartz royal family.”

“... What?”

“The succession is just a facade. Even if Heinrich gives up his claim, his position after the war would mean that he will still exert an influence over the succession within Kernstadt. And Vertus could, if he wanted, make Heinrich the king of Kernstadt. It would be an opportunity to replace the troublesome Schwartz royal family by setting up Heinrich, his man, as king. It would be strange if Vertus didn’t do it. Why wouldn’t he do so if he could?”

I pondered the idea for a moment. “Huh.”

Kernstadt would not be misreading it as interference. It really was interference. By severing ties with Kernstadt to eliminate the possibility of Heinrich’s assassination, the empire could use Heinrich to swallow the Schwartz royal family.

Charlotte thought for a moment, then shook her head.

“The more I think about it, the more it becomes clear that this strategy won’t work. If Heinrich ends up in such a position, he’ll definitely be killed.”

“It would provoke the Kernstadt royal family.”

“Yes, the current heir, Louise von Schwartz, isn’t a fool. Quite the opposite. If the empire makes such a decision, she’ll immediately recognize what’s going to happen. She would not only move against Heinrich more quickly, but it would also completely ruin relations with the empire.”

Taking this particular step to prevent his assassination would end up increasing the possibility of assassination instead.

Severing the ties between Heinrich and Kernstadt was a much more dangerous alternative. If Heinrich stayed under Kernstadt’s influence, his position would inevitably grow, and his royal siblings would feel threatened by this and kill him. But if Heinrich remained with the empire, the Schwartz royal family, fearing a future in which the empire would use him to swallow the Schwartz royal family, would kill him.

“Is he destined to die...?”

No matter what, Heinrich would be assassinated.

Was it impossible to avoid resorting to extreme measures to prevent a future in which Heinrich was killed?

“Do we have to kill the Schwartz royal family members at the base in some way?”

“We can’t touch Louise von Schwartz.”

“Why...?”

“It would cause even greater chaos. She’s the commander-in-chief, and she herself has a very strong position within Kernstadt. What happens to an army that loses its commander-in-chief? There probably isn’t a commander within the Kernstadt army more capable than her. But if you kill everyone except Louise von Schwartz and Heinrich, Louise von Schwartz will eventually try to kill Heinrich, so it’s meaningless.”

Charlotte was worried about the same thing I was.

It was a headache. Too much of a headache. Both Heinrich and Louise von Schwartz were too important.

Either one of them dying would be a problem, and if there was no way to solve the problem other than through death, then what was the right move?

“Let’s bring him over here.”

I blanked out. “What?”

For a moment, I didn’t understand what Charlotte was saying.

“Heinrich is too entangled in the politics within the Allied Forces. I think the assassination would happen after the war, but every moment is dangerous, and Heinrich could be assassinated as the army is advancing across the continent. Therefore, the only way to keep Heinrich alive seems to be to have him here with us.”

I had considered this as well.

“I guess so,” I said, “But there is no guarantee Heinrich would willingly join us.”

“That’s true. Given everything that’s happened, it would be hard for him to accept us, and especially you.”

The possibility of Heinrich willingly siding with me seemed very low. It was clear that coercive or violent methods would have to be employed.

“Still, this is the only feasible strategy that comes to mind right now,” Charlotte said, finishing her sandwich.

Recruiting Heinrich... We could try, but could we convince Heinrich?

The argument that it was for his personal safety, and not to strengthen our forces... If we made such an offer before any assassination had been attempted, Heinrich would never accept this line of reasoning.

‘Let’s think about it from my perspective. Vertus secretly approaches me, saying that Charlotte and the core forces of Edina are trying to oust me, so I should join the empire. “You’re in danger,” he says. “If you don’t join the empire, you’ll die.”

‘Would I believe that? I don’t think I would.’

***

Recruiting Heinrich... It seemed like there was no other option at this point.

After finishing our meal, and even though it was late at night, Charlotte and I had a cup of tea on the terrace of the royal palace.

I liked going up the spire to look down on Rajak, but the view of Rajak from this terrace was just as panoramic.

The view from the royal palace was better than what we had at the Temple.

The issue of when and how to recruit Heinrich required further discussion and thought.

“The Kernstadt royal family... It’s not my concern now, but they were always quite troublesome, especially from the empire’s perspective,” Charlotte said.

The primary vassal state, and the ruler of all the vassal states, the imperial family... The Schwartz royal family envied the Gradias imperial family for their position. They had the potential to take the empire for themselves, but the Gradias imperial family was too strong.

“I don’t know if it’s rude to say this to you, but the reason the Gradias imperial family has maintained its hold while the Schwartz royal family hasn’t been able to overthrow us is largely due to the influence of the Dark Land.”

“I suppose that makes sense.”

Vertus had said something similar in the past, though not in these exact words. That was why my attack on the Order of the Holy Knights to rescue the demon prisoners had pleased Vertus, despite the losses. He believed that incident would help to sustain the empire a little longer.

Without me, and if the Gate Incident hadn’t occurred, there might have been a revolution, or the empire might have been divided when Kernstadt’s leadership rose to challenge them again.

One massive event had consumed all other possible eventualities, erasing them all.

“Did you know that Kernstadt has an academy similar to the Temple?” Charlotte asked.

That was news to me.

“Really?”

Naturally, Kernstadt had an inferiority complex, and was sore about their position in relation to the empire. They would surely envy the Temple, a crucial project and a cradle for nurturing and securing talent. Therefore, instead of sending their royals to the Temple, Kernstadt created their own system, which was modeled after it.

“I hear the quality of education there is quite good, but... I don’t know much about it. They say they’re trying hard to catch up with the Temple.”

Just as the Royal Class had little interest in the Orbis Class, the Temple had little interest in the Kernstadt Academy that was trying to catch up with them.

After all, there was no comparison to be made, so why bother? That was probably the sentiment they had.

“Because of this, Heinrich’s enrollment in the Temple was quite a surprise for both the empire and the Temple. The Schwartz royal family of Kernstadt sending a royal to the Gradias Empire’s Temple...”

“That makes sense.”

There was an incident, and that was why he was sent to the Temple, almost as if exiled.

However, it was also my first time learning that Heinrich had not even been allowed to enrol in the academy within Kernstadt.

I knew what had happened with Heinrich and his circumstances. But did Charlotte know?

“Hmm... Reinhart, you might not know about this, and it might be rude to talk about this behind his back, but there’s rumors of an incident that forced Heinrich to go to the Temple.”

“I know a little about it,” I said, not wanting to pretend not to know and then have to act surprised.

“Oh, really?” Charlotte exclaimed, but didn’t ask about the source of my information.

She continued, “I heard that when he was very young, he awakened his ability, and two of his older siblings died... At least that’s what I heard.”

“Yeah, that’s the gist of it.”

“Hmm...”

Charlotte took a sip of her tea. “Anyway, it was an accident, and it couldn’t be helped... Also, Heinrich enrolled in the Temple when he was in elementary school, so that incident was a long long time ago...”

What was Charlotte trying to say?

“It was a significant and tragic incident in which direct members of the royal family died, but was it really something that warranted Heinrich being sent to the Temple, almost as if exiled? I’m not sure.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. After all, it was an accident, and completely unintentional. But... to put it bluntly, they sent him to the Temple, a place they detested. It was as if they wanted to send him far away to a distant country, and then lost interest in him afterward. Well, there was a perception back then that supernatural powers were considered ominous, but...”

“That’s true.”

Supernatural abilities were sometimes considered ominous because they were unknown and mysterious powers, and this belief was probably much more prevalent in the past.

“Don’t you think it was a bit excessive of a punishment?” Charlotte asked.

His siblings had died, but in the end, it was still an accident. It did seem like an excessive punishment. After all, he was still royalty.

“It seemed like he was... excessively hated.”

The Temple was a school attended by the children of influential people, royals, and nobles from various places. While they mingled and were educated together with eligible commoners, ultimately, it was a school for the children of influential people.

“By looking at the backgrounds of the students who come to the Temple, you can get a sense of the political situation in various places. The Temple also gathered information to help us understand the current state of the continent.”

“Oh, really?”

“Was there any reason not to?”

The Temple collected information on students. Of course, this information gathering was limited to students from influential families or royalty, but still.

“Well, they don’t go as far as investigating each student’s background, but things can be inferred from the information provided. The Temple even has a dedicated department for that.”

I learned one of the Temple’s secrets that I didn’t know. It wasn’t a professional intelligence agency, but since a substantial amount of information was provided to it, the Temple had no reason not to use that information.

“Based on the speculative information I’ve received about Heinrich von Schwartz... there’s something important.”

“What is it?”

“Heinrich is hated by the royal family. To an extreme degree.”

“I see.”

“Supernatural abilities often awaken in extreme mental states, right?”

“Yeah.”

“I wonder what kind of situation Heinrich had been in when he awakened his ability. He doesn’t remember it himself because he was too young.”

Supernatural abilities awakened under extreme mental strain.

The underlying truth behind the story that he was hated by the Kernstadt royals and sent to the Temple because he had accidentally killed his siblings...

“I think he was abused,” Charlotte said.

“...”

“He wasn’t hated because he killed his siblings. The order is reversed,” Charlotte stated calmly. “They hated him from the start.”

Heinrich von Schwartz had experienced immense suffering at a young age and was abused by his siblings.

In pain, his pyrokinesis had awakened, and he killed his siblings. People lost their lives, but it was still ultimately an accident.

An ability awakened through abuse... There must have been a reason for that abuse.

Charlotte made a chilling deduction.

“Heinrich von Schwartz might be an illegitimate child. That explains why Heinrich was so hated by his siblings. It also explains why, as you said, the Schwartz royals at the base might want to kill Heinrich before he becomes a bigger threat.”

I felt sorry for Heinrich, but Charlotte’s brutal deduction seemed to fill in the gaps in the story.

It felt close to the truth.

If this were true, Heinrich wouldn’t know he was an illegitimate child.

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