Of course he’s fucking around…!
Kang Chul-In realized that he had fallen into a trap when the Ectoplasm Oversuit enveloped his body. He tried to gather all his mana to resist.
It’s futile.
You bastard…!
As long as you have the Ectoplasm Oversuit on, you have to witness my memories.
…?
Judging from your personality, you won’t ever listen to me. Thus, I had to resort to such trickery. Blame it on your own shitty temper, you scum.
The pot was calling the kettle black. Who was telling Kang Chul-In that his personality is atrocious?
Don’t worry.
Crazy bastard… you think I will buy that?
You shall see. Well then, hope you learn something from this experience. Ah, just to add...
…?
Beings that share the same soul can’t possess each other’s body, in case you are worried that I will take control of your body...
What a joke.
...!
You taking over my body? That’s the shittiest thing I’ve ever heard.
What a temper...
The Emperor of Blood and Iron blurred his sentence, as if he was too tired to respond.
Anyways, judge for yourself. A present is a present...
Shut the fuck up!
I shall excuse myself then… ahem...
That was the end. The Emperor of Blood and Iron’s voice could no longer be heard.
This is…!
Kang Chul-In could feel some sort of ‘memory’ flowing into his brain. The emperor’s memories… pieces of archaic information from a thousand years ago were being delivered to him.
***
“Kya~!” Arshelly, my daughter, smiled at me.
Cute.
I finally realized what ‘happiness’ was, as I observed my daughter. What is it about this small being, this infant, that makes me so happy? Is it just because she is my blood-kin? No, that’s not it. The blood that runs in my veins is that of the Aurangzeb family, the most notorious and contaminated family on this continent.
That was the reality for royals. It was the destiny of an Aurangzeb to deem even his parents, spouse and children as political enemies and cut their heads off. I was no exception. I rose to the throne by killing my father, Saturnus, the Emperor of Lunacy and Darkness.
I could be seen as a traitor... scum who murdered his father. That was my very nature. No euphemism, such as restoring the order, could mask it.
Of course, I have no regrets. Saturnus is the enemy who killed my mothers, brothers and my one true mother. How could I regret killing such a man? I dreamt of being such scum since young, and I am proud to have brought it to fruition.
However...
“Kyaaa…!”
To be honest, I’m afraid. In the future, if I become corrupted with power, or if I can’t suppress my surging lunacy... If such a day comes… will I point my sword at this baby who is smiling so brightly at me – my daughter, Arshelly? Just like how my ancestors did?
“Phew.” I couldn’t hold back my sigh. Humans are bound to be corrupted, and I’m no exception. This throne, this power that rules over this vast continent, may corrupt me one day. No, even if I remain uncorrupted, a power struggle between me and my children can happen at any time.
This baby, Arshelly, may challenge me for the throne in the future.
“…Damn it.” I bit my lower lip in frustration, and a bloody scent filled my nose. That brought me back to reality somewhat. Why am I worrying about a power struggle with my own baby daughter, which may or may not even happen in the distant future?
To feel threatened by a baby girl... Is that the lunacy of the imperial throne? O possibly the instinct of an Aurangzeb, the inheritor of dirty blood?
“No.” I turned around in response to a voice from behind my back. “You will never do that. Neither will my daughter.”
There… my most beloved woman was smiling at me. The Empress and the mother to my daughter, as well as my wife, ‘Brynhildr Freyja Norn Arondight’.
“It’s a pointless worry.”
“...”
“Although it’s an inevitable thought.”
“Inevitable?”
“Because that has been the history of the Aurangzeb family.”
“...!”
“So you did harbor such bad thoughts.”
I had the chills. I felt naked and exposed.
“That’s not it.”
“What’s not?”
“...”
“You were thinking that you could become corrupt and that our daughter would point her sword at you in the future, weren’t you?”
I had nothing to say.
What even...
I feared nothing but my wife. My wife always read my mind, and I lied whenever she did to evade the situation.
As a result...
“Dear, you need some scolding.” I always lost. “How could you harbor such bad thoughts?”
“That’s not it...”
“Oh really?”
“...”
“Of course, I don’t believe that you truly feared you and our daughter’s corruption.”
“Honestly...”
“No.” Brynhildr shook his head. “You grew up listening to your ancestors’ wrongdoings, so it’s not surprising for you to think that way.”
“I-Is that so?”
“It’d be weirder if you weren’t worried.”
“… I see.”
“But don’t worry.”
“...?”
“You are stronger than any of the previous emperors who ruled this empire. And so is your wife.”
“...!”
“If you become corrupt, then I will teach you a good lesson. If our daughter becomes corrupt, then we can guide her to the correct path together, couldn’t we?”
“Ah?” What she said made sense. “T-That’s true...”
“Also.”
“...?”
“Are you that weak to fear your wife and daughter?”
“Weak?”
“If you can’t even look after your own family, then you should stop being the emperor and go fish some Leviathan in the northern archipelago. Don’t you think so?”
She was right. I didn’t even realize that this primitive emotion known as fear was inducing my defense instincts and bloodthirst. In the end, my ancestors (including my father) might have been weaklings, as aptly termed by my wife...
“Also, you are...”
“...?”
“An extremely lazy person.”
“...”
“I know that the only reason you remain on the throne is because you don’t have an heir. Aren’t you thinking that being an emperor is cumbersome and tiring?”
What insight. Yes, I found being an emperor quite troublesome… all the time. I just wanted to be a retiree.
“Don’t be worried because of your ancestors’ past wrongdoings, which you are not obliged to follow. That’s hardly like you. My husband – my daughter’s father – is totally different from those foolish men.”
“Of course I am.” I nodded to support her statement. That’s right. I was totally different from my ancestors. I was supposed to be eliminated, but I died once and instead revived through the Wheel of Resurrection. The reason why I could rise to become the emperor was because of my thirst for revenge on that ‘damn bastard’ and a sense of rebellion to escape from my dirty descent.
There was a difference in ‘purpose’ between me and my ancestors. They aimed to claim power from the very start, but I didn’t. I just wanted to take revenge on my father, and somehow became the emperor during that process.
I’m someone who became the emperor by chance. Therefore, I would never aim my sword at my family out of fear that they might steal this power.
“Kyaa…!”
That lovely child… my precious daughter would never threaten me to relinquish my throne. And so what if she did? I could just slap her buttocks or simply give her the throne. My daughter… was that precious to me.
After struggling through mountains of bodies and rivers of blood, my soul tired from such relentless chaos was gently caressed by this child.
“Dumbo.” My wife smiled at me. It was a beautiful and blinding smile.
“Brynhildr.” I wanted to hug her.
“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty?”
“Come here.” I pulled her closer to me so I could embrace her.
“Your Imperial Majesty!” At that moment, an unwelcome guest arrived. “E-Emergency!”
An elderly magician hurriedly rushed in with a blushed face and kneeled in front of me. It was Nilus, an arch mage who synthesized a level 10 spell. He had the power to become a duke or even a king anywhere on this continent. It’s delightful to have such a talent as my loyal subject, but...
“What is it?” I could only respond curtly. After becoming the emperor, I indulged myself in a gigantic pile of work (I often stack up the paperwork for fun, trying to reach the 10 metres high mark) all the time. Naturally, quality time with my wife was extremely important and I didn’t want it to be interrupted.
“That is...”
“...?”
“A mysterious disease has emerged in Nosferatu!”
Nosferatu. It was located in the northern tundra region.
“A disease?”
“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty.”
“Can’t you just send the medical knights and supplies?”
“B-But…!”
“...?”
“The victims are transforming into monsters and are attacking our soldiers indiscriminately.”
“Hmm...” It was an interesting report. “A mysterious disease… transformation… hmm...”
There had to be a catch.
“A dark magician? Or a necromancer?”
They were all of the same kind.
“I think so too.”
“Right?”
“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty.”
“Then...” I immediately pictured the perfect individual who could resolve this situation.
“Send Count Hector Evans, together with the antimagic knights.”
“Kueh… that’s a great decision, Your Imperial Majesty!”
Nilus bowed at me.
What’s great? It’s obvious.
However, I didn’t appreciate his praise. Hector Evans, also named the Spell Thirster, was a knight with a unique spell called ‘Spellthirst’, which allowed him to absorb any magic below level 10. In other words, he was a natural counter to magicians. Even a child could think of sending Hector Evans to subjugate a dark magician or a necromancer. Thus, there wasn’t a tiny bit of reason to receive praise.
But I didn’t reprimand Nilus. This old geezer had always been like this. It wasn’t flattery. I know how loyal he is.
“Send a message to Hector Evans.”
“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty.”
“Tell him to punish that daring bastard on behalf of me and my empire.”
“Certainly, Your Imperial Majesty!”
“Ah, and also...” I added. “Tell Hector Evans that...”
“...?”
“If the enemy turns out to be stronger than expected, or if there is a risk of casualty amongst the antimagic knights...”
“Your Imperial Majesty...”
“Tell him not to overdo himself, and report immediately to me.”
“...”
“The antimagic knights are valuable human resources. I can’t just let them be sacrificed in vain.”
I couldn’t look Nilus in the eye.
“Haha… Your Imperial Majesty...” He seemed to have read my mind and let out a hearty laughter.
“Hmph!” And so did my wife.
“...”
I remained quiet to play dumb.
“Hohoho… w-what are the chances?” Nilus spoke with cold sweat.
That sly old geezer! He was definitely conscious of my wife’s mood.
“There shouldn’t be a need for Your Imperial Majesty to personally join the conquest!”
“...”
“Unless there is a demon king – no, a great demon king – what are the chances?”
“I-Is that so…?”
“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty!”
With that, my escape plan was brought to naught. What a pity. I desperately wanted to escape the dreadful paperwork... To be honest, I even wished for a great demon king to appear.
Rummaging through the paperwork was just that agonizing.
“T-Then I shall excuse myself. Hohoho...” Nilus hurriedly left the scene.
“Dear.” Immediately, I could hear my wife’s furious voice.
“W-Well then, see ya...”
I tried to leave but,
“Where do you think you are going!”
It was futile.
But what I didn’t know was that this eccentric phenomenon at Nosferatu would eventually lead to an apocalypse.
Two months later, I received an interesting report.
“Your Imperial Majesty...” An elderly subject, Alfred Northlord De Saedius, the great Vampire lord, reported to me. “C-Count Hector Evans…!”
“...?”
“He returned without a single remaining antimagic knight.”
“He lost all of them? Annihilation?”
“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty. Also...” What Alfred reported afterwards was even more shocking. “Count Hector Evans...”
“...?”
“… Lost both of his arms…!”
At that instant, I realized that something extraordinary was happening in Nosferatu.