Demon King of the Royal Class-Chapter 656

“Don’t charge the Arc Crystal?” Kaier asked, frowning at Rudina’s suggestion.

“Yeah,” Rudina replied. “We just need it for the battle at Diane, right?”

Once the battle at Diane was done, the Gate Incident would be resolved. Rudina was proposing leaving the Arc Crystal as it was and using it only once.

“But we need to keep using it during the battle,” Kaier pointed out. In every battle, he would continuously charge the Arc Crystal during combat while Rudina drew out its mana.

“You collapsed last time,” Rudina reminded him gently.

Kaier fell silent, aware of how poor his physical condition had become.

Even though just one battle remained, it was unclear if Kaier would remain safe if they used the Arc Crystal the same way as before.

The Arc Crystal was in a fully charged state. Rudina was suggesting that Kaier step back, and that they face the final battle without constantly charging it.

“I get what you’re trying to say,” Rudina acknowledged, meeting Kaier’s intense gaze. “If you’re around, I can use more magic, and that would definitely help.”

“...”

“But you also know that there’s that... strange army with us.”

Kaier’s eyes widened. He understood what “that army” was.

“People say it’s an undead army made from the bodies of fallen soldiers, but who knows how much of that is true?” Rudina said. “Regardless, because of that army, our role isn’t as crucial as it once was. So, I think just one change of the Arc Crystal should be enough.”

There was no need to use mana if it meant draining away life.

Kaier knew about the Immortals. Rudina wasn’t wrong. With the Immortals around, the need for Rudina to use magic by drawing mana from the Arc Crystal had diminished, which also eased the burden on Kaier.

But was it really okay to do so?

Before Kaier could respond, Rudina dropped to her knees in front of him.

“Please,” she implored, gazing up at him with earnest eyes. “Don’t push yourself anymore.”

Kaier remained silent, absorbing her words.

“I’ve been too hard on you,” Rudina admitted, her voice tinged with regret. “I was wrong. I didn’t understand anything. I only thought about myself. I was selfish.”

Kaier silently observed his younger colleague kneeling and pleading before him.

“I don’t know what to do. I want to apologize, but I don’t know how. I don’t know what a proper apology is. I’m sorry...”

As he gazed down at the sobbing Rudina, Kaier Vioden managed a bitter smile. He wasn’t the only one who was shattered. Rudina, who had been forced to decide the fates of so many, was inevitably broken as well.

Even though she was shattered inside, she was still apologizing, her eyes fixed on the pieces of what she had broken. Trembling, she bowed her head, whispering that she didn’t know what to do next.

He had always reassured her that apologies weren’t necessary and told her to continue on as they always had. He had always delivered those words in a tone of cold detachment.

Now, though, someone else could step into their roles, and the need for coldness vanished.

Clinging to the past just because he was still alive seemed foolish. Risking his life when it wasn’t necessary was not about ending the Gate Incident or saving people anymore. Even in this moment, telling Rudina to carry on as before felt like nothing more than petty revenge.

It was a way to force the annoying brat, who always scolded him, to save people using mana drawn from his own life force. It wasn’t about right or wrong; it was simply a spiteful act. It was just a way to torment her.

Kaier knelt before the apologetic Rudina. “I wanted to die and leave you to live with that regret forever.”

“Please... Please...”

“But I guess I won’t.”

Though his words dripped with malice, he was acceding to her.

There was no point in holding on to things that didn’t matter. Risking his life when it wasn’t necessary was simply foolish.

Rudina finally broke down in tears, and Kaier softly patted Rudina’s shoulder.

“I-I’m sorry...” Rudina sobbed. “It’s all my fault. I’ve gone too far.”

“Don’t cry. It’s irritating.”

Despite how annoying and rude she had been before, Kaier gently comforted his young senior.

***

Reconciliation is challenging, but once it happens, it often feels like nothing at all.

In the end, it was the Immortals who brought Rudina and Kaier back together.

Rudina realized that her role during battle wasn’t as crucial as it once seemed, especially after the Immortals appeared. Kaier understood that his insistence on charging the Arc Crystal came from a misplaced sense of duty.

In the end, it was Rudina’s efforts to persuade Kaier that brought about their reconciliation.

Only those who have reconciled truly understand.

Before reconciliation, it feels like the hardest thing in the world, but the real challenge comes afterward. The truly difficult part is what follows: the awkward silence that makes your whole body break out in a cold sweat.

“...”

“...”

If they had been truly close, things might have returned to what they were beforehand. But there was no past relationship that Kaier and Rudina could return to.

The Arc Crystal was a massive power source, and neither Kaier or Rudina had come up with the idea or how it was supposed to be used. It was Adelia’s brainchild.

Adelia had envisioned it because she knew someone with immense mana but no way to harness it, and someone who could calculate magic at supernatural speeds but lacked sufficient mana. Aware of the unique abilities of both Rudina and Kaier, she had created the Arc Crystal.

Though Rudina and Kaier were technically senior and junior, their relationship was more like that of colleagues brought together by work. They weren’t particularly close or distant; they were simply coworkers.

Therefore, to them, there was no such thing as going back to how things were.

Their attempt at mutual collaboration had been short-lived, and after things soured, each one built up a growing dissatisfaction with the other. Having never been close and only harboring dissatisfaction, the aftermath of this reconciliation felt even more awkward than when they were airing their grievances.

“...”

“...”

Rudina twiddled her fingers, and Kaier mirrored her unease.

“It’s... awkward... isn’t it?” Rudina finally managed to say, her voice strained.

“Yeah...” Kaier replied, unable to muster anything more.

In such moments, a change of subject is necessary.

Rudina gazed up at the summer night sky, shimmering with starlight.

“There are so many strange rumors going around these days,” she remarked.

“Ah... those,” Kaiser said.

“With the war winding down, all sorts of stories are emerging.”

Rudina brushed off the ominous rumors circulating among the troops as nothing more than idle chatter. She believed people were simply caught up in the excitement, letting their imaginations run wild. After all, most of the stories were truly hard to believe.

“Most of them are probably true,” replied Kaier softly.

Rudina seemed taken aback.

“What?” she asked, her voice tinged with disbelief.

“Most of them are true,” Kaier repeated calmly.

Rudina looked utterly bewildered.

“What do you mean? Which rumors are true?” she asked, her curiosity piqued.

Kaier met her confused gaze and explained, “The story that the Empire used dark magic to raise an undead army from the bodies of the fallen.”

He paused, letting the weight of his words sink in before continuing, “And that there are those who sided with the Demon King.”

His voice remained steady. “And the Emperor’s involvement in the Gate Incident. They’re all probably true.”

Rudina’s eyes widened in shock at Kaier’s revelations.

“The end of the war will not be a true resolution,” Kaier said softly. “Something else will probably begin.”

He gazed at Rudina with quiet intensity. “I may not be so significant, but you’re important. So you should know this.”

The truth itself wasn’t what mattered. What was crucial was deciding where to stand and what to believe.

***

In her tent, Rudina sat in silence. The hour for sleep had come and gone, yet she remained wide awake.

‘Most of the rumors are true.’

An undead army.

Traitors to humanity.

The Emperor’s involvement in the Gate Incident.

Rudina didn’t dwell on whether she hated the Demon King. She couldn’t reconcile the Reinhart she knew with the Demon King the world feared, but she couldn’t entirely separate them either.

Even if she wasn’t sure who the real Demon King was, there were still monsters in front of her. So she focused on fighting the monsters, setting aside thoughts of blame or the reasons behind everything that had happened.

Even if she tried to make sense of it, she couldn’t figure out what was truly wrong.

But now that the issue had been brought up, Rudina was forced to confront the dilemma she had been avoiding.

Where had all this begun, and who was truly to blame? Were those labeled as traitors to humanity actually guilty? Were there others who deserved to be judged?

Like many, Rudina found herself lost in a sea of confusion.

The beliefs she had once held as undeniable truths were quickly unraveling.

Was the Demon King truly evil? Was humanity really the victim?

As the lines between truth and lies blurred, everyone had to make their own judgment.

Eventually, the weight of it all became too much for Rudina, and she quietly slipped out of her tent.

Perhaps, as the end drew near, the number of sleepless nights would only increase.

Rudina noticed someone else awake, sitting quietly in a shadowed corner of the tent.

“Adriana...?”

It was indeed Adriana, gazing vacantly at the starry sky.

“Oh, Rudina.”

“What are you doing up?” Rudina asked as she carefully sat down beside Adriana.

“Just thinking,” Adriana replied with a soft smile.

Adriana had always been more than a big sister to Rudina, and with the world the way it was, she meant even more.

When Adriana had suddenly announced her decision to leave the Temple, Rudina felt as if her heart was being ripped in two. Watching Adriana departing with a sorrowful expression left her feeling utterly lost.

Reflecting on that moment, Rudina vividly recalled how Reinhart’s demeanor had grown utterly serious when Adriana revealed her plans to leave. After that day, Adriana never returned to the Temple.

However, when the Gate Incident erupted, Adriana unexpectedly joined the Temple army.

She still hadn’t shared the details of those intervening months with Rudina.

“Can’t sleep?” Adriana asked softly.

“Yeah...” Rudina replied with a nod.

It would be dishonest to say Rudina had no ties to the Demon King. Technically, it was an unpleasant connection, but in hindsight, it wasn’t appropriate to call it “unpleasant”.

Clearly, Adriana’s bond with Reinhart was much stronger than Rudina’s.

“Adriana, have you heard the rumors?”

“Rumors...? Oh... you’re talking about that.”

There were countless rumors swirling around, and the tension within the Allied Forces was so palpable that even those who usually ignored gossip couldn’t help but overhear.

The subject of Reinhart had been off-limits between Adriana and Rudina for a long time. This was the first time in years that they broached the topic, even if indirectly.

“Adriana, what do you think?” Rudina asked, her voice tinged with uncertainty.

The rumors had been swirling about for some time, and somehow, Kaier Vioden seemed to know the truth. He had confidently claimed that most of them were accurate.

Even though she remained skeptical, Rudina couldn’t help but wonder what she was supposed to do if the rumors were indeed true. No matter how much she pondered, the answer eluded her.

Adriana stayed silent for a moment, then turned to Rudina with a thoughtful gaze.

“It’s a sad thing,” she finally said. “That’s what I think.”

Though her words seemed simple, to Rudina, they felt like they came from a place of deep reflection.

“Rudina.”

“Yeah?”

“Let’s survive until the end.”

Adriana gripped Rudina’s hand firmly, her voice barely above a whisper. Her words carried a profound sense of determination and hope.

In reality, they didn’t need to say any more.

Despite the countless mysteries and bewildering events they faced, their goal remained unchanged.

To survive. To endure, and find a place in the world.

In the end, every conversation boiled down to that simple truth.

As Rudina gazed into Adriana’s determined eyes, all her worries seemed to fade away.

It was too late to dwell on the truth. They had fought to survive, to save, and now it was time to bring it all to an end.

“Yeah,” Rudina agreed, her voice steady.

They just needed to survive.

“Let’s definitely do that,” she added with conviction.

Adriana pulled Rudina into a tight embrace.

***

Amidst the uncertainty, the Allied Forces, already showing signs of division, advanced toward Diane, the capital of the fallen nation of Rizeln. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

As they neared the last cluster of gates, monsters began to appear even before they reached the operational area. This forced the Allied Forces to remain in a constant state of combat readiness.

The closer they got to Diane, the more monsters they encountered. The Immortals were on continuous deployment to clear the path for the Allied Forces and to suppress any monsters that tried to go around them and attack from behind.

Thanks to the tireless efforts of the Immortals, who handled most of these surrounding battles, combat fatigue among the Allied Forces remained low.

Steadily, little by little, the Allied Forces approached the day when they would finally bring an end to this long, arduous ordeal.

Gwooooar!

Grrrrrrr!

Within the Allied Forces Supreme Command Headquarters, the roars and rumbles of colossal beasts and the echoes of distant explosions could be heard.

“Tomorrow is the day,” Emperor Vertus announced softly to the assembled military commanders.

Their reactions were mixed. Several had already pledged allegiance to the Demon King, while others remained loyal to the Empire. Some, torn between the two, looked upon the Emperor with doubtful eyes.

In the end, personal judgments and opinions were irrelevant. As long as they were there, they had to fight. It didn’t matter whose side they were on or whom they supported. To survive, they had to put an end to the Gate Incident.

“The Immortals are currently holding a defensive perimeter around the encampment. Tomorrow, all forces will advance on Diane,” Vertus announced.

“Operational guidelines have been issued, and each unit should follow the detailed instructions. They are very similar to our previous operations, but make sure you’re familiar with them.”

He looked around the room. “Retreat is not an option. The path behind us, beyond the reach of the Allied Forces, is already overrun with monsters. Remember this: our forces are surrounded by monsters.”

The Allied Forces had broken through the monster hordes to reach Diane, with the Immortals leading the charge. But despite their tireless onslaught, the path the Allied Forces had carved out was now overrun with monsters again.

The battle would not be confined to a single front; it would rage in every direction. If things grew dire, only a handful could escape through teleportation, leaving the last army of humanity trapped.

This desperate stand was their only chance; without it, the attack could not even be attempted.

Having come this far, the Allied Forces, regardless of their loyalties or beliefs, were united by a single purpose: the destruction of all warp gates in Diane. Failure meant annihilation, and with it, the doom of humanity.

Emperor Vertus, nearly bereft of allies, addressed them with a gravity that demanded attention.

“Three mega gates, five large gates, seven medium gates, and fifteen small gates,” he listed. “These are the last remaining warp gates in the world. If we destroy them all, the Gate Incident will end.”

He paused, letting the weight of his words settle. “It has taken humanity’s total effort to bring the Allied Forces to this point. There is no next time. If even one warp gate remains and our army falls, not just the last army of humanity, but the entire world, will perish.”

The room fell silent, each face reflecting the seriousness of their mission.

Among them stood Commander Rowen of the Order of the Holy Knights.

Words felt inadequate. In the end, they had to face the battle.

Someone, aware of the finality, quietly broke the silence.

“Your Majesty.”

There were truths that could only be spoken of now, at the very end.

“Did Your Majesty truly cause the Gate Incident?”

The solemn atmosphere turned icy.

Once, merely speaking those words would have been a death sentence. But now, given the unique circumstances, such words could be uttered directly to the Emperor himself.

Emperor Vertus regarded the speaker silently.

It was a question that lingered in everyone’s thoughts, yet only one dared to voice it.

Vertus’s expression was stern. “Is that important now?”

His response was neither a confirmation nor a denial. Yet, in truth, it seemed more of an affirmation.

As the tension in the atmosphere grew, teetering on the brink of breaking, the Emperor, eyes closed, spoke softly.

“May the gods bless us all.”

That was probably the Emperor’s only sincere wish.

***

Gwoooooar!

The cries of countless monsters and the booming of explosions echoed not far away.

Though the advance was scheduled for the next day, the battle raged on.

War machines would be assembled and begin their bombardment as soon as they reached the operational area. They were tasked with clearing the path once the advance was ordered.

As with any city assault, the battle itself wouldn’t last long. If it dragged on, it would spell annihilation. The Allied Forces could not count on reinforcements, while enemies would continue to pour in at an overwhelming pace.

The final meeting of the leaders of the Allied Forces was over. The Emperor stood waiting at the designated warp point, waiting to return to the imperial palace, as the distant sounds of battle filled the air.

There was no need for the Emperor to linger on the battlefield. There was no certainty as to whether the Allied Forces would even heed his commands, so staying served no purpose. He only needed to stay in the capital and wait to receive reports of the battle’s outcome.

If the Allied Forces were annihilated, he would brace himself for humanity’s impending doom. If they emerged victorious, he would prepare for whatever came next.

He waited for the Imperial Mage Corps to cast the teleportation spell at the warp spot. Sabioleen Tana stood by his side.

Given the unsettling rumors swirling among the Allied Forces, the Emperor was, in fact, in the most perilous place for him. Thus, Sabioleen Tana remained vigilant, guarding the Emperor and keeping a watchful eye on their surroundings, just in case someone, influenced by those strange rumors, attempted to harm him.

Only the Emperor and a few attendants would be returning.

Naturally, Sabioleen Tana, who was not only the commander of Shanapell but also a formidable warrior, would take part in the final battle.

The future was uncertain. Yet Sabioleen Tana vowed to secure victory in the battle the next day. No matter what happened, she promised to return to Gradium with the news that everyone’s hopes had been realized.

“Your Majesty.”

“Yes, Dame Tana?”

Sabioleen Tana needed to address the Emperor with what might be her final question.

“I have something to ask.”

“Yes, go ahead.”

“The rumor...” Sabioleen Tana bit her lip and lowered her eyes as she spoke. “Is it true, Your Majesty... did you cause it?”

The rumor in question was the one that claimed the Emperor of the Empire orchestrated the Gate Incident.

Sabioleen Tana had felt a chill when she first heard that strange whisper circulating, and she knew as soon as she heard such rumors that Reinhart, the Demon King, couldn’t have been the one to spread them.

Even if Commander Rowen of the Order of the Holy Knights had acted on her own, Reinhart would not have let her continue spreading such rumors.

In the end, there was only one possible origin for the rumor.

At Sabioleen Tana’s question, the Emperor’s lips curled into a slight smile.

“Who knows?”

“...”

The Emperor’s response was as vague as ever. Just like the answer he’d given at the headquarters tent, it wasn’t a direct admission, but it might as well have been.

Sabioleen Tana felt a wave of devastation wash over her. She clenched her teeth, unsure of what to do next.

“Dame Tana.”

“Yes, Your Majesty?”

“You will not participate in the battle tomorrow.”

The Emperor’s unexpected words left Sabioleen Tana stunned.

“Pardon me...?”

“You have a different task.”

This was supposed to be the final battle, and undoubtedly the most important one.

The shocking order that she was to withdraw left Sabioleen Tana speechless.

“We’ll discuss it in detail when we return,” the Emperor said.

“Your... Your Majesty...?” Sabioleen Tana stammered, struggling to find her voice.

Flash!

Before she could say anything more, a brilliant flash of light enveloped both the Emperor and Sabioleen Tana as the mass teleportation spell was cast.