Demon King of the Royal Class-Chapter 513

Rumors spread throughout the Allied Forces that the hero, Ellen Artorius, had awakened yet another power.

Those who witnessed the vanguard sweeping away the monsters ahead of the main force as they advanced could not help but be amazed.

Massive waves of flames poured out from the Cloak of the Sun which protected the hero, engulfing the attacking monsters.

The fiery waves turned the weaker monsters to ashes, while those that managed to withstand the heat of the flames met their end at the Void Sword, which cut through anything.

The hero was the embodiment of the judgment of the sun and moon, sweeping away the waves of monsters at the front. However, the flames of hatred pouring from the Cloak of the Sun did not distinguish between friend and foe.

Therefore, no one else could enter the battlefield when Ellen was sweeping through it.

Most of the Allied Forces were encouraged by the fact that the hero had grown even stronger, but not everyone felt the same.

While the other soldier’s marveled at the hero’s majestic form, those from the Temple who knew Ellen Artorius felt uneasy.

Ellen seemed a little strange. She had always been quiet, but now, she spoke even less. Her eyes appeared unfocused, and at times, she would clutch her head and mutter incoherently.

The army advanced and set up a new camp.

The emperor and the popes of the Church of the Five Great Gods visited the encampment. Officially, it was to boost the morale of the Allied Forces and the Order of the Holy Knights, but the emperor had a secret agenda. He had come to check on Ellen’s condition after receiving a report from Sabioleen Tana that something was wrong with her.

Inside the Temple encampment, in Ellen Artorius’s tent...

“Ellen.”

“Yes?”

Emperor Vertus couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease when he saw Ellen. He sat across from her, watching her as she stared blankly into space with unfocused eyes.

Only Sabioleen Tana remained by Vertus’s side.

Ellen had awakened another power she hadn’t been able to use before. However, despite her newfound strength, there seemed to be a serious problem with Ellen Artorius.

“You seem like you’re in pain.”

“...”

Everyone who knew Ellen personally asked about her condition. They asked if she was in pain, and if she was okay.

But Ellen would shake her head at such questions, insisting she was just tired.

With her eyes still unfocused, she furrowed her brow and scanned her surroundings, as if trying to confirm what was around her.

She recognized the presence of Vertus and Sabioleen Tana.

“I met Reinhart recently,” she said.

Ellen was still maintaining her sense of self.

***

Vertus and Sabioleen Tana knew the truth about the Gate Incident. Therefore, Ellen decided it was okay to tell them what she had experienced.

Reinhart had been on the verge of dying, and she had taken on that burden from him. She gave a brief rundown of what had transpired, leaving both Vertus and Sabioleen Tana shocked.

A spiritual phenomenon created by too many deaths in a single place had overwhelmed Reinhart, and it had been passed onto Ellen. It was no wonder Ellen’s mind was not fully intact.

“Even if you say it’s irresponsible, I had to do it. I thought it was something I had to do,” Ellen muttered in a daze. She had to save Reinhart.

“...”

“...”

Vertus and Tana couldn’t deny that it had been a reckless act. However, they also understood Ellen’s desire to save Reinhart.

“My sense of self will probably disappear gradually. But I won’t harm other people... I’m sure.”

Having been burdened with humanity’s hatred for the Demon King, she would eventually become a puppet driven solely by that hatred. However, she believed that even if her sense of self disappeared, she wouldn’t harm humans.

Having now drawn out the true power of Lapelt, Ellen had grown stronger. But there was another reason why Ellen was telling them about this.

“So, when the Gate Incident is completely over... please kill me...”

After the Gate Incident was brought to a close, Ellen, whose sense of self would have disappeared, would surely try to kill the Demon King.

“Before I try to kill Reinhart...”

She was asking Tana and Vertus to let her die once her purpose was fulfilled.

***

“What’s this?”

“...”

Rumble!

Riana, having taken an alchemical potion mixed by Lucinil according to Harriet’s recipe, summoned three tornadoes in succession at the beach.

The morality of using such a potion aside, it seemed like there was nothing better for fully unleashing her abilities.

“...”

Of course, watching Riana, whose complexion had turned pale, was quite distressing.

“Let’s really only use this when absolutely necessary.”

“Yes, we should...” Riana nodded slowly in agreement with Lucinil’s words.

The potion was effective, but dangerously so.

In the end, I wouldn’t have to push Riana to activate her abilities. But it was painful to see Riana in this state. It seemed like she was being punished in a way.

In any case, the conclusion was clear. Riana was invincible when under the influence of this depression-inducing potion.

***

The potion Riana took had a definite effect.

But... a potion that made one feel depressed instead of happy... Could a potion with such an opposite effect really be good? Because of its effects, it was definitely not a good sort of drug.

Harriet had said there would be no side effects, but since the potion’s mood-altering properties could, in themselves, be considered potent side effects, it couldn’t be used frequently.

The more it was used, the more the user would suffer. That was why Harriet had warned against prolonged use.

Riana focused on Harriet’s assurance that there would be no other side effects other than the potion’s mood-altering effects. Even without my supervision, Riana, along with Lucinil, was training relentlessly on the deserted island, trying to explore the depths of her abilities.

The accelerated development of her abilities might seem positive on the surface, but was it truly a good thing? Riana was pushing herself to the limit.

Meanwhile, the preparations for war and the selection of the elite units, led by Olivia and the Vampire Lords, were progressing smoothly.

Once we took action, humanity’s army would be able to advance more quickly, and the conclusion to the Gate Incident could be accelerated.

I continued to fight Ellen in my dreams every other day. It still wasn’t going well. Fighting without the resolve needed to hurt Ellen put me at a disadvantage. Moreover, the Void Sword Lament was able to cut through everything except holy relics.

Even though I had reached Master class, my baseline stats were still lacking, and I wasn’t prepared to fight properly.

I experienced defeat every time, which ended in my death in the dream.

The pain I felt at the moment of death in the dream was like a bonus.

Progress was made on other fronts as well.

“Is this already completed?” I asked.

“Yes. It wasn’t that difficult.”

I stood in awe, staring at the milky-white obelisk that had replaced the central fountain in Raziern’s square.

Passersby glanced curiously at the newly-erected obelisk, wondering what it was, but none of them knew its true purpose.

Harriet and Airi stood beside me.

“The Secretary’s abilities are truly astonishing the more I learn about them.”

“Is that so...?” Harried said as she scratched her cheek. She was unaccustomed to praise.

The Dream Obelisk... Harriet had not only succeeded in understanding and adapting the power of dreams into a form of magic, but also turned it into an artifact.

I noticed her scribbling down research notes the past few days. It seemed this was what she had been working on for the past few days.

“For now, I’ll monitor its effects and, if it seems beneficial, consider installing more in other areas,” said Harriet.

“Sounds good.”

While the significance of having a good night’s sleep during these times might seem trivial, I believed it would be helpful for the people, especially those who experienced restless nights. freewebnoveℓ.com

***

Dream magic, strictly speaking, wasn’t magic at all, but a unique ability possessed only by succubi. Harriet’s ability to reinterpret it as magic and turn it into an artifact was an achievement that surpassed those of most great mages.

Harriet’s magical prowess had grown so much since her first year in the Temple that such feats were now possible.

She had matured enough to fully utilize her talent, which was considered the greatest in magical history.

Ironically, Harriet’s rapid development of the artifact was partly thanks to Charlotte. Previously, Harriet had had no personal time because of her duties as my secretary. However, since Charlotte managed to handle her duties well without needing a secretary, Harriet could now devote all her time to what she wanted to do.

All this was a little strange. It was good that Harriet could now focus entirely on her research, and it was also good that Charlotte, who was undoubtedly more capable than me when it came to governance, had taken over my duties and was doing better than I did.

But this situation objectively showed that I had been consuming too much of Harriet’s time because of my incompetence.

It kind of made me feel bad about myself.

“...”

That night, as I sat on the bed after getting ready for sleep, Harriet noticed my silence.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, inclining her head.

“What?” I replied.

“Are you upset?”

“No? Not at all.”

“You don’t seem to be in a good mood.”

I didn’t think I was letting it show. After all, I had no reason to be upset. If anything, I should have been pleased that one of my suggestions had been implemented so quickly.

Harriet stared at me intently.

Come to think of it, since taking over the governance of Edina, I spent the most time with Harriet, and therefore, she was the most sensitive to changes in my mood.

I couldn’t hide anything from her. Her gaze continued to linger on me, and I sighed.

“It’s just that I feel like I’ve been taking up too much of your time, that’s all,” I said.

“My time...?”

“Yeah. Even with just a little bit of time and focus, you managed to create something like that. If I were a bit more capable and could handle governing on my own, you could have spent your time doing more constructive and progressive things... something only you can do.”

Harriet was too talented to be doing secretarial work for me, but everyone else around me had been too busy with their own tasks.

Harriet had reluctantly taken on the role of my secretary, but she was also an irreplaceable talent.

If Harriet hadn’t been doing secretarial work and had focused on her research, she might have accomplished greater things.

‘If only I had been a bit more capable...’

With Charlotte, who was undoubtedly better at governance, now taking over as regent, I couldn’t help but think about what could have been achieved in the past.

“Oh... Is that what this is about?”

“Yeah, it’s a silly thing, but I can’t help thinking about it.”

As I sighed, Harriet smiled gently.

Harriet sat on the bed, hugging her knees, and pondered. “Well... hmm... I don’t really know what else I could have done, if I had been doing something else. I was busy just like you.”

“...”

“But I liked it.” Harriet looked over at me. “I liked being the closest to you.”

I couldn’t bring myself to look directly at Harriet. “Is that so?”

“Even if I could have done something else, the things we accomplished together haven’t disappeared. Just because Charlotte is now doing what we did, and she’s faster and better at it, doesn’t mean the things we managed to do are worthless.”

“... You’re right.”

Yes, that was true.

Just because someone else found it easy did not invalidate my past achievements.

At some point, age seemed to have become meaningless at some point. I had been helped immensely by all those around me, and in some ways, others were wiser than I was.

Not to mention, they said things that were nice to hear, and while such words might be meaningless, people still needed to hear them.

Harriet had been the closest to me all this time, and she still was. Harriet said she liked that, regardless of practical efficiency or other possibilities.

I also liked it, to be honest. At some point, Harriet had become devoted to me. She was willing to give me everything.

After finishing her words, Harriet resumed writing in her research journal. Even without the need to act as my secretary, Harriet remained busy and continued to find things to do.

“But still, take it easy. Do you still have more to do?” I asked.

“For now, the obelisk needs to be monitored, but there are other things to do.”

“Other things?”

“I’m learning about soul-binding from the head of the Wednesday Clan.”

‘She’s suddenly learning about soul-binding from Lucinil?’

At my puzzled expression, Harriet gave a sad smile.

“We have to find a way to bring Ellen back,” Harriet said.

“Ah...”

Her words sucked the breath out of me.

Harriet quietly continued writing in her research journal. I didn’t know what she was writing, but she would write a little, think a little, then write a little more.

“We did what we had to because there was no time. But there might have been another way.”

“...”

“Ellen took on everything, and I can’t just forget about it.”

Harriet continued writing in her journal. “Ellen is my friend too.”

It wasn’t only Antirianus who suggested Ellen take on everything; Harriet had been involved as well.

Ellen was also Harriet’s friend. I had forgotten this obvious fact for too long.

After writing in her journal for a while, Harriet suddenly looked at me.

“So don’t thank me,” she said.

“Huh...?”

“If you do, I’ll feel hurt.”

Harriet’s words left me speechless.

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