WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
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◈ Our Precious Demon King ◈
Chapter 67: AA Three
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“Th-the Sword That Calls Disaster... Hrk!”
The young noble hastily clamped a hand over their mouth after the words slipped out.
They were terrified that they might draw the man's attention.
This was more shocking and frightening than seeing the emperor slaughter the King of Yunapa at a victory banquet to fulfill their ambition of uniting the continent.
The man's arrival had frozen the banquet hall in the middle of the slaughter.
The imperial knights who had been overpowering the two kingdoms' guards, and the kingdom's knights gathered around the King of Daul, who had barely survived.
Even the nobles and servants fleeing in panic had frozen.
In that silence, the man gazed at the emperor.
Tap, tap.
The man walked forward.
As always, he carried the sword that had become his symbol.
The moment that blade left its sheath, this place would become hell.
Everyone watched him carefully.
Some stared only at the entrance after the man passed them.
The Sword That Calls Disaster.
If the man carrying that sword had come, then Disaster would soon arrive.
The worst being in Belheim's history.
The man who had driven the Allied Forces to the edge of destruction, then turned around and destroyed the Demon King's Army.
The being who had finally wiped out the demon realm lords and the Demon King before disappearing.
‘He was alive?’
Now that the Sword That Calls Disaster had appeared, Disaster was already inside the imperial palace.
“...”
The emperor trembled.
Having already risen from their throne, they dropped flat onto the floor and shook.
Stop that man!
Protect me! Save me!
They wanted to shout, but they couldn't bring themselves to open their mouth.
That man was frightening enough, but the one who would follow him...
‘Was the Mad Sovereign truly alive?’
The unease and anxiety they had felt when they failed to find the man's body slowly rose again.
Since the Mad Sovereign hadn't appeared for more than two hundred days, they had rashly assumed that the man had met his end alongside the Demon King.
Clack, clack.
Even when everyone else froze, there were always those with a strong sense of duty. Randuin, a knight of the imperial palace guard, was one such person.
Randuin knew history, but trusted nothing without seeing and experiencing it firsthand.
The Mad Sovereign had driven the Allied Forces to the brink of destruction a full 120 years ago.
Afterward, he had led his own forces and continued his long war against the Demon King's Army.
In other words, aside from the occasional visits when he caused havoc at the imperial palace, few people had faced the Mad Sovereign in person.
Newly knighted and proud to serve in the imperial palace guard, Randuin stepped forward, deeply disappointed by the cowardice of the senior knights.
“Halt! You stand before Their Imperial Majes...”
Shhk.
Randuin's head flew off before the sentence was finished.
The guard commander shot a warning look at the other new knights before any of them could act rashly.
There was nothing they could do.
This was a natural disaster.
The guards weren't protecting the emperor?
No, this was how they protected them.
They couldn't upset that man for no reason and get the emperor's head cut off.
Just like the previous emperor, and the one before them...
“One.”
With that puzzling word, the man climbed the long staircase and approached the emperor lying before the throne.
“It's noisy here. What sort of party was this?”
“I-it was a victory banquet celebrating the d-defeat of the Demon King.”
The emperor answered anxiously.
He might arrive at any moment.
He...
“The tribute is lacking.”
Remi calmly stated his business.
An elderly minister beside the emperor stepped forward.
“P-poor harvests lately...”
Shk.
Three words were enough to cost Duke Begong, chancellor of the Adrian Empire, their head.
The emperor bowed even lower.
“I shall offer far more tribute.”
That was the answer Remi wanted.
He nodded.
“Bring me a spatial pouch.”
“Ah, if you would just wait a moment...”
Shk.
The reason Marquess Mikael, the court mage, died was nothing special.
“Three.”
The quick-witted guard commander took the pouch from the court mage's waist and offered it with both hands.
“...”
Once Remi accepted it, his business was finished.
His errand was complete, but his expression grew sulky.
“I'll cut down seven more.”
“...!”
All the emperor could do in response to that calm statement was find seven victims.
“Your Imperial Majesty! It has been an honor to serve you!”
Count Yansen, commander of the Imperial Palace Guard, drew a sword and stepped forward without a moment's hesitation.
Apart from sacrificing one's life, crossing blades with the world's greatest swordfighter was an honor for any swordfighter.
“Please grant me a lesson!”
“Come.”
Commander of the Imperial Palace Guard.
It wasn't a position someone could claim through loyalty alone.
It also required exceptional skill.
Count Yansen was a Swordmaster, the strongest fighter in the empire. No one could dispute that.
Clang, cla-clang.
Remi smiled faintly at the first decent opponent he had faced in a while.
Unlike the Demon King's Army, which was full of reckless fighters, the Allied Forces were packed with cowards. He hadn't expected much.
He was excited to find someone worth crossing swords with after so long, but he couldn't damage his master's dignity for a little entertainment.
Shk!
He cut off the count's head within five exchanges.
“Four.”
Six remained.
He looked around, but no one else had the courage to attack.
‘Tsk.’
The reckless fools on Earth were more entertaining.
The fear of the Mad Sovereign carved into the Allied Forces had completely crushed their courage and will to challenge him.
Just look at them now.
Most kept glancing at the entrance, trembling in fear of when he might arrive.
Remi lost interest.
He was a swordfighter, not an executioner.
Still, it would be a shame to leave already.
“Emperor.”
“Yes. Please, ask anything.”
Emperor Augustus Adrian III bowed and spoke with the greatest respect, but no one could accuse them of damaging the dignity of their position.
This truly was an unavoidable disaster.
When wind and rain grew fierce, it was only natural to take shelter beneath the eaves.
This was no different.
“Is there anyone you want dead?”
“...!”
A switch suddenly flipped in the emperor's mind.
The Mad Sovereign sometimes treated them warmly, but only when they obeyed.
‘Disaster isn't in a bad mood.’
What a relief.
The emperor quickly pointed at the King of Daul's group.
There happened to be five knights guarding the king. Including the king, that made exactly six.
“Please execute them.”
Tap.
The King of Daul was horrified when Remi approached without hesitation.
A cornered rat would bite a cat.
With certain death approaching, no human would simply give up without a struggle.
“D-die!”
“Protect the king!”
Their loyal knights charged at once, only to collapse with their heads severed.
Shhhk.
Remi flicked the blood from his sword, walked calmly up to the terrified King of Daul, and cut off their head.
“Ten.”
What a shame.
Without the restraints, he could have killed everyone in this banquet hall except the emperor.
“Emperor.”
“Yes!”
Augustus Adrian III practically flew down the stairs and threw themselves flat before Remi.
“If you neglect the tribute, I'll visit more often.”
“I-I shall never allow that to happen!”
Remi nodded and left.
Until he was completely gone, the people in the banquet hall waited, careful even with their breathing.
The sharp stink of blood made them sick, but fear kept them frozen.
“Haaah.”
“How can this be? The Mad Sovereign is alive.”
“Disaster is still out there!”
Once Remi had vanished from sight, cries of despair rose throughout the hall.
“Your Imperial Majesty!”
The emperor's attendants hurried over to help them, but their mind was already racing.
“Hurry! Prepare the tribute. Hurry!”
“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty!”
It had been a mistake.
A terrible mistake.
The Mad Sovereign was neither dead nor gone.
‘He's gone into seclusion.’
Like mages sometimes did, he must have shut himself away in his dungeon.
He might come out for amusement now and then, but officially, he was as good as retired from the world...
‘All I need to do is keep up the tribute.’
Augustus Adrian III understood the Mad Sovereign's intentions.
First, offer tribute on time.
Second, I know what you're planning. But I won't stop you.
He had even disposed of the King of Daul's group before leaving, almost as if granting the emperor's wish.
‘He's practically given me permission to unite the continent.’
Their mind worked quickly.
‘He doesn't intend to interfere in human affairs.’
Having destroyed the Demon King's Army, he had quietly withdrawn from the world.
The Mad Sovereign was sending a message to them, Augustus Adrian III.
‘Try restoring humanity's prosperity!’
I shall carry out your will.
O Disaster.
* * *
Kim Junyong's base in Hansan 2-dong.
Pop, pop.
“Huh? What's this?”
Kim Junyong blinked at Remi, who had suddenly appeared.
Long, straight hair and pale skin.
Beauty that would make even a succubus look like a mere extra.
“I'm back.”
“Oh, good. That took longer than I expected.”
“The imperial palace was far away.”
Well, it shouldn't have been that far...
“Did you walk?”
“To enjoy the sights.”
“Hmm.”
Kim Junyong frowned.
He was a little jealous.
“How was it?”
“Same as ever.”
“What about AA Three?”
“They thought you were dead, Master. They seemed happy about it.”
“That little bastard.”
Kim Junyong chuckled.
He could clearly picture the shock on Augustus Adrian III's face when Remi appeared.
“Nobody follows orders as well as that one.”
He briefly checked the space connected to his mind.
“Wow, the tribute's already pouring in.”
People were flocking to the altar, offering fresh meat, harvested grain, and weapons, armor, and crafts they had put their hearts into making.
All of it was being sent by teleportation into the underground tribute storehouse, where the dungeon keeper Gram was sorting it.
“They really do follow orders well.”
They were good at their job and quick to catch on. Keeping them as emperor was clearly the best choice.
“AA Three isn't that old, so they should be good for another fifty years...”
That was five years in Earth time.
Around then, he would need to replace them with another obedient emperor.
‘I'll get the ticket within five years.’
The Base Conversion Ticket for his Belheim dungeon cost seven beads.
Once he turned the tribute dungeon into a base, Kim Junyong would finally be able to travel there by teleportation without restrictions...
“This is strangely exciting.”
Earth was his home, so why did Belheim feel more like home?
Was it because he had lived there for two hundred years?
All his good and bad experiences had mixed together and settled into memories, leaving him with a vague longing.
“The dungeon's gotten bigger.”
“Oh, I used an expansion ticket.”
He had used the Base Expansion Ticket before Remi returned.
All nine buildings in the area were now within the base's range.
“Are you planning to take on more retainers?”
The dungeon was a space connected to Kim Junyong's mind.
It served as both a subspace storehouse and a resting place for his retainers.
“No, I'm just moving in with my older sister.”
“Hmm.”
Remi wrinkled her nose.
“Now that the place is bigger, why not summon Malsun?”
“Malsun? Hmm, let's see.”
Come to think of it, he had gained quite a few levels while busily clearing dungeons in his subordinates' absence.
Whenever his white mana cores increased, his dark mana cores increased as well to maintain the balance.
White mana gradually recovered on its own. With dark mana, however, only the capacity increased. He had to fill it by absorbing emotions.
‘They're completely empty.’
His current mana reserves were terrible, but his maximum capacity had grown considerably.
“I should be able to summon Malsun.”
He would have to go and gather a large amount of negative emotion.
But as a civilized man, Kim Junyong didn't like the idea of attacking a village and absorbing fear and pain like some small-time dark mage.
[Crack! There it goes! It's going! It's gone!]
Kim Junyong stroked his chin at the sound from the TV, which he had turned on to keep himself company.
“Oh?”
Sports would be good.
Sporting events were places where whirlwinds of emotion raged, almost like battlefields.
Footnotes:
“AA Three” combines the two A's in Augustus Adrian with “Three” for III. In Korean, it also sounds like an order for three iced Americanos, since “AA” is slang for an iced Americano.
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