Dark Warlock in the Apocalypse-Chapter 225 : blankly

Everyone in the room stared blankly at Justin after hearing the explanation. There wasn't a single person who didn't know exactly who the "right person" in the discussion was. Confirming their suspicions, Damian nodded and continued.

"In hindsight, it was a pretty crude plan. If anything had been delayed or any unforeseen variables had arisen, everything would have fallen apart. I'm just glad things worked out," he admitted.

"You seemed pretty relaxed for something so precarious. Deep down, you were confident, weren't you?" Justin asked with a grin.

"It wasn't so much confidence in my plan as it was trust that you would arrive in time," Damian replied.

Justin couldn't help but laugh at that.

"That's quite a roundabout way of saying you thought I'd move quickly to seize such a valuable territory," he said, amused by how Damian spun the situation.

'He's not wrong, though. Given the circumstances, it was easy to guess I'd come charging in,' Justin thought to himself.

Before any major war had even begun, Justin had planted a spy. Through that informant, he had long since learned the location of the territory. He had a dimensional scroll ready to drastically shorten his march at any moment, along with a force bolstered by second-tier veterans and Fafnir. With all these advantages, it was only a matter of time before Justin made his move.

'Most people would have debated whether to fight or surrender at that point,' Justin mused, but Damian hadn't even had the luxury of choice. No matter what decision he made, the leaders of his faction wouldn't have followed him. Whichever side he chose, it would have been used as an excuse to remove him from power or push for independence.

Understanding this, Damian had chosen a more indirect path.

"So, in the end, I'm the only one who benefits from this," Justin said with a smirk.

"I didn't mind it too much. Not having a choice means I have no regrets about making the wrong one. Plus, the thought of being freed from such a heavy responsibility was a relief," Damian replied, his tone lighter than before.

Adrian, Damian's loyal aide, seemed shaken by his leader's confession, his eyes trembling as he struggled with conflicting emotions.

"Bruh, this is…" Adrian began, his voice heavy with concern.

"Enough," Damian interrupted softly. He turned to Adrian with a sorrowful expression, both apologetic and resigned.

"I understand how you feel, but by now, you should realize there's no chance of winning against Justin," Damian said, his voice filled with quiet finality.

"But still…" Adrian tried to protest, but Damian cut him off again.

"There's no point in fighting a battle we can't win, only to increase the number of casualties. It's better to end things cleanly, like this. I hope you can understand that," Damian said.

Adrian opened his mouth to speak but ultimately hung his head in silence, his shoulders slumped in defeat. He looked like someone who had carried too much weight, only to have it all collapse. That's when Justin realized who Adrian reminded him of.

'Zachary,' Justin thought.

Or rather, Zachary if he had failed. It seemed that Adrian had once harbored dreams of a brighter future in this new world, only to see them crumble.

Damian, noticing his aide's despair, glanced briefly at him before turning back to Justin.

"In any case, my role here is finished. So, Justin, what do you plan to do next?" Damian asked.

"What do you mean?" Justin replied, raising an eyebrow.

"Just as I said. If you want the territory, I'll hand over the position of leader within a few days," Damian explained.

Justin leaned back in his chair, pondering the offer. He knew that Damian's ultimate goal had been to prevent a war caused by the division of the factions. And now that Justin had arrived, that goal had already been achieved.

'No one here is going to start a war now,' Justin thought. The alliance members were likely too disoriented to even think about it. They had probably dreamed of ruling their own territories, only to realize that they were now destined to serve under him.

Whether they liked it or not, their aspirations for independence had crumbled, leaving them in a state of helplessness or clinging to hopeless fantasies.

'In other words, if I decided to take over right now, no one would dare resist,' Justin mused, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

He had initially come here to prepare the groundwork, but now the entire situation was laid out before him on a silver platter. The temptation to seize the territory right away was strong, but…

'It's not the right time,' Justin decided after a moment of thought.

"I'll pass for now," Justin said aloud.

"…!?"

Damian and Adrian blinked in shock, their mouths opening slightly in disbelief. Clearly, they hadn't expected Justin to refuse. But it was Justin's companions who were even more surprised.

"Lord!?"

"Why would you do that?" Derek asked, baffled.

"Why? Because we don't have the capacity right now," Justin replied casually.

"What do you mean we don't have the capacity? Our forces are more than enough! You don't need to worry about any rebellious factions!" Derek immediately retorted.

Justin clicked his tongue in response, realizing he needed to explain.

"Who said anything about lacking military power? I'm talking about administrative capacity," Justin clarified.

"Administrative capacity?" Derek repeated, confused.

"Think about it. We just added 30,000 civilians to our population. Did you forget what we came here to do in the first place?" Justin asked, narrowing his eyes at his companion.

"Uh… wasn't it to find an obstetrician?" Derek replied hesitantly.

"That was the excuse. But we really do need one. The problem of pregnancy and childbirth has become serious," Justin explained.

When the population had been smaller, things had run on a more ad-hoc basis, but now that the population had exploded, trying to run things the same way would only lead to disaster. There were too many corners of the territory that couldn't be properly monitored, even with their large number of pioneers.

"That's why we need to overhaul the administrative system. Even though the reintegration process isn't complete, as soon as it's done, the first thing we'll need to do is conduct a full population census," Justin concluded.

"That's a headache, but revising the administrative system and taking control of this place are two entirely separate matters, aren't they?" Derek remarked.

"They're not separate at all, and that's exactly the problem. Taking over here means doubling the workload. I can't just leave this place unattended, especially if it's under my jurisdiction," Justin explained.

"Why not deal with it separately? We could apply the administrative reforms in our own territory first, then introduce the same system here afterward," Derek suggested.

"It seems like a risky approach," Damian interjected, cutting into the conversation. Derek frowned, clearly displeased that a surrendered outsider had interrupted him.

"What's risky about it? Are you planning a rebellion or something?" Derek sneered.

"Hey! Watch your tone!" Adrian, agitated by Derek 's attitude, tried to step in, but Damian stopped him.

"Adrian, it's fine," Damian said softly, calming him down. Though frustrated, Adrian bit his tongue and stepped back, allowing Damian to continue speaking in a more measured tone.

"It's simple. If you leave this territory unattended for too long, the people here will get the impression that you're not paying attention to them," Damian explained.

"So what? Is anyone really going to challenge the absolute authority of the lord?" Derek scoffed.

"They won't challenge it directly. Instead, they'll think they can get away with all sorts of schemes behind your back. If their leader doesn't even visit, why would they be afraid of him?" Damian replied.

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"…!"

Derek was taken aback by the unexpected logic and quickly turned to Justin, who nodded in agreement.

"That's exactly what I was trying to say. I've always said perception is key. Once you let people think you're not watching, it becomes incredibly difficult to correct that impression later," Justin said, reinforcing Damian's point.

"It would be much better to finish all the necessary preparations and then actively involve yourself in the territory. If people believe you're keeping a close eye on things, they'll be far more cautious about how they behave," Damian added.

"Especially in a place like this, where there was already an attempt at independence. If I leave this place unsupervised, it's practically an invitation for people to do whatever they want," Justin said.

"If left unchecked, they'll take advantage of the situation, perhaps even going as far as collecting illegal taxes or committing other abuses," Damian warned, shaking his head as he considered the possibilities.

Watching the two of them converse, the others blinked in astonishment. Despite Damian's recent surrender, it was as if they had been working together for years, their thoughts and plans perfectly aligned.

But no one was more surprised than Justin himself.

'This guy's actually more competent at long-term thinking than Zachary was. He's easily S-tier as an administrator,' Justin thought, recalling how Damian had also shown great talent as a battlefield commander during the previous main quest.

With his skill set, Damian could easily manage a province.

'It's lucky his ideals are too lofty. If he were more ruthless, he could've been my greatest rival,' Justin mused.

But as fate would have it, Damian's high ideals had weighed him down, leaving him incapable of acting as a leader anymore. Now, his only option was to serve as one of Justin's aides. Not only had Justin acquired a large, valuable territory, but he had also gained an S-tier asset in Damian.

Justin couldn't help but smile at the thought. While he was quietly pleased, Damian seemed to have come to terms with the situation as well, nodding his head in understanding.

"Anyway, given the circumstances, it can't be helped. I'll manage the territory for now. But since my authority here is weak..." Damian began.

"You want me to demonstrate that I'm backing you up? Don't worry. I'll make sure to leave a strong impression as I tour the territory," Justin replied, understanding what Damian was implying.

"Thank you. That's a relief," Damian said, visibly more relaxed. The weight of responsibility seemed to lift from his shoulders, and he even appeared pleased, perhaps because he realized that Justin wasn't the oppressive ruler some had feared.

After a brief moment of reflection, Damian chuckled.

"Now that I think about it, I have to commend you for going through all this trouble to find an obstetrician. For a normal birth, another type of doctor could have sufficed," Damian remarked, almost as if he were teasing.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Justin asked, his brow furrowed.

"Wait… You didn't know? Any doctor with basic medical training would have the knowledge to assist with childbirth. They might not be specialists, but they'd know enough to help," Damian explained, his tone slightly surprised.

"Seriously?" Justin blinked, caught off guard by this revelation.

Damian looked at him in disbelief.

"Yes. Every doctor covers basic medical procedures during their training, even if they specialize in a different field later on. Even an intern would have learned about childbirth."

"So you're saying… any doctor would've worked?" Justin asked, starting to turn his head, embarrassed that he hadn't known this.

"Yes, more or less. A general practitioner might not be as experienced as a specialist, but they'd still be more than capable of handling a birth," Damian confirmed.

Justin averted his gaze, feeling somewhat foolish.

'How would I have known that? It's not like I've ever studied medicine,' he thought.

Meanwhile, Nina, the Dark Dragon Sorcerer, kicked a small stone on the path and let out a frustrated sigh.

"This is ridiculous," she muttered, her annoyance clear. She might have been on duty, but her attitude couldn't have been more relaxed. Not that anyone around her seemed to care, as they were all just as bored.

"Sis, instead of moping, why don't we play a game of Go? It'll help pass the time," one of her companions suggested.

"Go, my foot. We're just scratching lines into the dirt. It's not like it's the real thing," Nina replied.

"Yeah, but it's not bad for killing time," the companion insisted, licking his lips in anticipation.

Despite their attempts to persuade her, Nina refused. The sheer monotony of the situation was getting under her skin.

'The lord's chief aide only reached level 25 after an eternity. How long do I have to keep doing this?' she thought bitterly.

Nina had just reached level 24 recently, and with one more level, she would be the first second-tier adventurer among those who weren't directly connected to the leadership. But she knew how much more experience was required to cross that final threshold.

To speed things up, she needed to keep hunting relentlessly.

'But of course, I got stuck on guard duty at the dimensional portal,' she grumbled internally. Normally, the dimensional portal would serve as the entry point to various hunting grounds, but since the second great migration, hunting had been temporarily halted. With the lord away dealing with another territory, Nina and the other elite adventurers had been tasked with overseeing the integration process.

Leaving the portal completely unguarded posed a risk of exploitation by outsiders, so someone had to stay behind. Unfortunately, Nina had drawn the short straw and was stuck with the task.

'If only I could be out there showing off my strength. Instead, I'm just wasting my time here,' she thought, annoyed. Meanwhile, those weaker than her were probably flaunting their power over the newcomers.

The more Nina thought about it, the more irritated she became.

'No one in their right mind would even think of coming through this central dimensional portal, especially when it takes a whole squad to get this far…' she mused.

Rustle.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a noise coming from the bushes. It wasn't the kind of sound caused by the wind; it was too deliberate.

"Did you hear that?" Nina asked, suddenly alert.

"Yeah, I heard it," one of her companions replied, immediately standing up.

Though there were only three of them, they were all part of the elite first group of adventurers. Even if a mid-tier adventurer party tried to invade, the three of them could handle it.

The problem was that to reach this point, the invaders would have to be top-tier as well.

'Could it be that dragon rider coming back to use the portal?' Nina thought, her anxiety rising.

The three of them braced themselves, their thoughts racing. If it really was that dragon rider, they knew they couldn't stand a chance against him. Watching the bushes closely, Nina prayed that her worst fears wouldn't come true.

Rustle.

Suddenly, a group of adventurers stumbled out, their bodies battered and covered in dust. Though they didn't appear gravely injured, they looked completely worn out. It was clear they had been through some sort of ordeal.

As Nina stared at them, trying to figure out what had happened, something clicked in her mind, and her eyes widened in shock.

"Wait… aren't these the people from that cult we ran into before?" she shouted, recognizing them immediately.