God-Tier Enhancement: My Upgrades Never Fail-Chapter 195: Episode _You Can Come Whenever You Want, But You Can Only Leave When I Say So (3)

Chapter 195: Episode 195_You Can Come Whenever You Want, But You Can Only Leave When I Say So (3)

5.

In a cave deep within a secluded mountain.

“The time has come!” a voice declared.

“Ooooh!” the others roared.

“The day of His advent is near.”

A group of figures in black robes held a grim meeting.

“We will emerge into the world and hasten His arrival.”

“Ooooh!”

“Plunge the world into chaos! Distract them from the gates!”

“Yes!”

It was clearly a gathering of villains, a wicked scheme to endanger the innocent and throw the continent into crisis.

“Two hundred years have passed. Let us fulfill the dream our predecessors could not!”

The black magic mages! For centuries, they had hidden themselves so completely that their very existence had faded from public memory. Now, they were preparing to act.

“Let us unleash our long-held resentment!”

Madness! Joy! And fear! The moment they had waited for was here, yet it was still terrifying. If they succeeded this time, their long wait would be rewarded with hope. But to seize that hope, they had to risk their lives.

They needed to buy enough time for the demonic energy-imbued gates to take root across the continent, which meant they had to create a powerful diversion. In that, they were experts. Massive monster raids, plagues—they had countless ways to slaughter humans with black magic. But every method was a gamble with their own lives.

There was a reason the black magic mages—who considered human life as disposable as a fly’s and would sacrifice hundreds of children’s living hearts just to advance one circle—had hidden themselves so thoroughly for centuries, barely daring to breathe. Under the reign of the current Emperor, not a single black magic mage had dared to show their face in the human world.

The reason was simple: the Emperor despised them.

If one was seen, if even a shadow was spotted, if a random person on the street merely claimed to have seen a shadow that looked like a black magic mage, the Empire would dispatch elite troops to scour the entire area. No matter how well they hid, when the entire continent was mobilized against them, they would eventually be found. And once caught, they would be tortured so relentlessly that death would seem a mercy.

The black magic mages had chosen their path to shroud the continent in darkness, but they were not demons. They had no desire to suffer such a gruesome fate. What’s more, a captured black magic mage often became bait to lure out others.

“The day has come to face that vicious Emperor. I know you are afraid. But this is something we must do, for our descendants and for the future of all black magic mages!”

The mages were silent, the weight of the words settling upon them.

They had to face the man they themselves acknowledged as the Demon Emperor.

The order was given, and black magic mages hidden across the continent began to move. Dark shadows seeped into the lives of the continent’s people.

*

In a small, ordinary territory on the continent—so small it was barely noticeable, with few residents and no real defenses—a lord was making his rounds.

“Off to the fields again today?” he asked a villager.

“Oh, my lord! Please don’t use such polite language with me. You mustn’t,” the villager replied, flustered.

“Haha, we’re all just trying to make a living together.”

The place felt so rustic and warm, with its simple-hearted people, that one could almost forget it was part of Fantastic World. It was a world where a man with a nominal title of quasi-nobility lived alongside commoners. They were poor and lived modestly, but they were perfectly happy. With no defensive structures, they were also free from the threat of war and monster invasions. Knowing this, the residents lived contentedly, without complaint or ambition, which in turn meant they invited no trouble. The territory was so lacking in valuables that no other lord bothered to covet it, maintaining a perfect, peaceful balance.

Then, a small change occurred.

“Hello? I’m a wanderer passing through. Might I rest here for a short while?” a young man asked.

“Oh, of course! Follow me. It’s not much, but I can offer you an empty room,” a resident replied warmly.

The young man, dressed in a black robe, had a simple, honest face. His arrival wasn’t particularly strange. Occasionally, adventurers who had lost their way or were exploring the nearby mountains would wander into the village. When they needed a place to stay, the residents always helped them. This time was no different. With his shabby clothes and kind smile, the visitor didn’t arouse any suspicion among the happy villagers.

He was given a room and easily settled into the village.

“To be honest, I’m a drifter, and I’m not sure what to do next. Would it be alright if I stayed in the village for a while to think things over?”

With a constant smile and a gentle way of speaking, he won over the mostly elderly residents. He was always respectful and proactively took on odd jobs. No one could bring themselves to turn away a young man who only asked for food and shelter in return for his help. And so, the young man became a part of the village.

A few weeks later, the villagers, grateful for his help, threw a festival. Despite their meager means, they butchered a pig and brought out beer, and the entire territory gathered to celebrate. They welcomed the young man as a new member of their family, forgetting their work for a day to drink and be merry. People of all ages laughed and enjoyed themselves.

It was the last sound of laughter the village would ever hear.

*

6.

The Emperor was in a foul mood from the moment he woke up.

“Your son-in-law has acquired another territory, Your Majesty,” a courtier reported.

The Emperor remained silent.

“He has reportedly seized all of the Marquis’s assets, as well as his title.”

He said nothing.

“The title is currently being auctioned by the kingdom in question, and the price is expected to be...”

“Enough. That will be all.”

He had been in a perfectly good mood when the territory war began. The fact that some nobody Marquis from another kingdom had dared to challenge an Imperial noble was certainly irritating, but the target was that adventurer punk, the thief who had stolen his daughter. That changed everything. He had seen it as the perfect opportunity to teach the upstart a lesson. The adventurer had gotten too arrogant, thinking he could backstab the Emperor and leech off him without consequence. So, he had ordered detailed reports on the war’s progress, purely for his own amusement.

He had wanted to go in person to watch the high walls and gates crumble, to see the territory trampled and witness the look of despair and fury on Simin’s face. Unfortunately, that wasn’t possible, so he had to content himself with the reports. Still, he had been certain of the outcome. It was a Marquis’s army, after all. There might be a difference between an Imperial Marquis and a kingdom’s, but a Marquis was still a Marquis. Who would have thought he couldn’t even conquer a single viscount’s territory—a nearly empty one at that, whose entire military strength consisted of one adventurer who was never even there?

The news that they hadn’t even managed to breach the walls infuriated the Emperor even more.

“And with this, they expect to fend off the dangers facing the continent?” he muttered. His pride in being far better prepared than during the crisis centuries ago vanished in an instant with the news of the Marquis’s defeat. It made his stomach churn. ’That bastard is making money again.’ Of course, the Emperor’s wealth was incomparable, but the thought of that man’s satisfied expression made his blood boil.

“Hmph.”

He had nowhere to vent his anger.

“The residents of the newly acquired territory are being relocated to other lands or put to work in the redeveloped areas. Many are choosing to move to the Rich Territory, where there are plans to construct a facility called a casino.”

“A casino?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. It appears to be some sort of gambling house from the adventurers’ world.”

“...He’s trying everything, isn’t he?” It seemed that ever since Simin appeared, his life had been filled with nothing but headaches. No, it was only when Simin was involved that things became a problem. A gambling house? An entire territory dedicated to it? He knew the Rich Territory had become famous across the continent as a theme park, but a casino was another matter entirely.

“I cannot let this pass.” He knew what would happen. Simin would use the Rich Territory as an excuse to promote the Empire’s name and then make some pathetic plea about taxes. But the Emperor was not so easily fooled.

“A gambling house, when he doesn’t even pay taxes? I will not tolerate it.” A bitter smile formed on his lips. In truth, he didn’t care if a casino was built on the scale of a village, a territory, or a castle. If he felt like it, he could easily overlook a trivial matter like taxes. But this was Han Simin. He couldn’t turn a blind eye to a man who didn’t pay a single silver building a massive gambling establishment, the most taxable enterprise of all.

“Summon him.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

As the courtier left to deliver the summons, the Emperor stretched. ’Finally, I’ll get to see that constipated look on his face again.’ Still, just in case, he ran through countless scenarios in his head. The most important thing was not to be caught off guard.

As the Emperor was eating, his mind still racing, a second source of stress arrived.

“Father! Did you hear? My husband turned the tide in a losing territory war!” the Princess exclaimed.

The Emperor was speechless.

“They say he made the arrogant Marquis surrender with a single, magnificent spell from his tamed dragon. Oh, I’m so disappointed I couldn’t see it!”

He didn’t respond.

“Aren’t you happy to have such a wonderful son-in-law, Father?”

“...Y-Yes, of course.” This was a problem he couldn’t just brush aside. She was his precious princess, the apple of his eye. And whenever she brought up Simin—a topic he loathed—she would shed her usual regal demeanor and cling to him like an affectionate puppy, something the iron-blooded Emperor rarely saw. Despite his stress, he couldn’t help but smile.

“Oh, I can’t wait to see him. He’ll be so pleased when I tell him I’ve secured enough funds to invest in his new territory.”

“...Hm?”

“I heard he’s building a new theme park to follow the Rich Territory. As his wife, it’s only natural that I support my husband in his endeavors, isn’t it? You’ll help too, won’t you, Father?”

Of course, it always ended with his throbbing headache getting worse. Her beauty blossomed as she approached adulthood, and her smile, free from the last vestiges of her curse, brought him joy. But her love for Simin, which grew deeper by the day, made his sighs grow just as proportionally.

“Haaah.”

After the Princess left, he pondered his next move. To abandon his plan now would be a blow to his pride, but to proceed would disappoint his daughter. As he agonized, a courtier rushed in, his face pale with urgency.

“Your Majesty, we have a crisis!”

Such haste and lack of decorum were unthinkable in the Emperor’s presence, but he paid it no mind. He might live a peaceful life now, but he was a tyrant forged on the battlefield for decades. In such situations, urgency took precedence over etiquette.

“What is it?” he asked, his demeanor shifting in an instant from that of a doting father to the ruler of the continent.

The courtier bowed his head, took a deep breath, and delivered the news.

“It appears the black magic mages have revealed themselves.”

“What?” The Emperor’s expression twisted into a deep scowl. But was it just an illusion, or was there a hint of a smile playing on his lips? He rose from his seat and began to walk. An outlet for his pent-up stress and tangled thoughts had finally appeared.