The ones left in the most ambiguous position in Hauria were the high-ranking demons who had departed Helmuth to collaborate with Amelia. The demons had hoped that the Demon King of Incarceration would eventually end the peace treaty.
They aimed to reap various benefits from the war that would erupt in Nahama. They would revel in slaughter after three hundred long years, harvest fear, make contracts with power-seeking humans, and collect souls. Then, as promised by Amelia, they would offer sacrifices from the battlefield to become Demon Kings.
Unfortunately, most of these expectations vanished into thin air. While slaughter was still possible, harvesting fear wasn’t. There was only one subject of despair and fear in this war.
Making contracts with power-seeking humans was impossible, too. Although some people were left in the city, the powers of the demons couldn’t beguile them. It was impossible to collect the souls of humans without forming contracts.
And becoming a Demon King? It was impossible to even attempt the ritual. The hundreds of thousands of soldiers conscripted from the Emirs never even got to participate in the war. The madmen that were beguiled by demons and the remaining humans in the city barely numbered ten thousand.
But instead of attempting the ritual with the few allies, if they sacrificed the enemies.… Or if they left the city and made another city the sacrificial grounds for the ritual….
Asking about it now would be foolish, even idiotic since one demon had already asked the question on the first day.
— If the citizens are expelled, what happens to the ritual we were promised?
It was a question aimed at Amelia.
The demon never received an answer. He was immediately swallowed by a gray mass after asking the question. This silent execution didn’t allow the demon any resistance, surprise, or pain. The ominous gray mass — the power of Destruction — instantly swallowed and killed the demon despite the demon being ranked within the top sixty.
Although the demon’s question went unanswered, the surviving demons took the execution as the answer itself. The devil was a terrifying existence whose mere presence caused everyone to kneel, and he clearly had no intention of performing the Demon King ritual for them.
‘Hamel of Extermination….’
The three strongest demons in Hauria were ranked twenty-sixth, thirty-third, and fortieth. All three demons had participated in Amelia Merwin’s conferral ceremony as the new Staff of Incarceration. They had survived the event and knew that Amelia Merwin had turned Hamel of Extermination into a Death Knight.
Although they were under strict orders from Duke Giabella and Duke Gavid to keep silent about this fact, they found it both surprising and delightful that the notorious Hamel had been turned into a Death Knight and a servant to a black wizard.
‘How did he acquire such power?’
These three demons could guess the identity of the devil after seeing him in action and because they had previously seen him. Despite the devil’s masked face, they still re-lived the dreadful memories of Hamel.
“Oh, Incarnation of Destruction.”
The subjects of Destruction from Ravesta knew the specter wasn't actually Hamel. The specter was born from Hamel’s corpse as a Death Knight, and the inhabiting soul was a fake. But that only increased their awe and worship toward the specter as the Incarnation of Destruction.
The specter was a miracle wrought by the power of Destruction. Both the body and the soul residing within were the products of the power of the Demon King of Destruction. Therefore, the subjects sincerely projected the Demon King of Destruction onto the specter.
The Demon King of Destruction was a true Demon King who rampaged indiscriminately in that joyful era of war. And now, the Demon King of Destruction had sent an incarnation after spending three centuries in slumber. The existence of the incarnation was, in itself, the manifestation of the will behind the name Destruction.
"Amelia Merwin's army of undead is complete."
The specter did not sit on the throne in the palace. Instead, he sat atop the highest tower as he stared down at the ruined city. He had been perched there for some time while looking down, and as such, he was well aware that Amelia’s army had been completed.
He also knew that Alphiero had not reported it out of ignorance.
The old, greedy vampire was displeased with the fact that the specter was lingering in the city. He wanted to open the gates of the Centipede Mountains and strike first with the giant monster in the lead.
"There's a city not far from here. With your permission, I can join Amelia and—."
Alphiero’s words were abruptly cut off. Although he wasn’t directly under the gaze, the dark power emanating from the specter probed Alphiero’s soul, instilling a chilling fear as if he were stepping into death's realm.
"I beg your forgiveness… for my presumptuous words,” apologized Alphiero.
He knelt down and buried his head. The specter ceased his threat and withdrew his power. He could have killed Alphiero right there and then but judged it more convenient to keep such a powerful demon alive.
‘At most, a few days,’ the specter thought.
He knew that he didn’t even need to intervene. Alphiero’s life was limited to only a few more days.
Of course, Alphiero thought differently. He misunderstood the specter’s lack of action. He felt exhilarated to have survived without significant punishment from the specter.
'He recognizes me,' Alphiero thought, thrilled.
The high-ranking demons of Helmuth, including the three among the top fifty, received power from the Demon King of Incarceration. However, Alphiero was considered one of the strongest among the subjects of Destruction. He wasn’t inferior even compared to the high-ranking demons of Helmuth.
'But….'
He had no intention of comparing his strength with the specter's. However, he couldn’t help when it came to that. Alphiero swallowed hard and cautiously lifted his head as he thought, 'I never expected such a thing to be hidden here.'
The city had long been Amelia's domain. She had been the Sultan’s advisor and the grandmaster of black wizards.
Meanwhile, she had been secretly working for a hidden purpose.
Amelia had prepared a secret weapon for war before discovering Hamel's tomb and securing his remarkably well-preserved corpse.
The Ashur Desert, where Amelia’s dungeon lay, was unanimously labeled as the ‘Desert of Death’ in Nahama. Amelia forbade anyone from entering the desert for decades because she had been devoted to the creation of this entity.
She had made repeated adjustments for decades until finally, the creation was laid in the deepest part of the capital’s underground cemetery to build up a concentration of death energy.
This was the culmination of all her efforts.
'Kamash.'
The specter gazed upon the giant standing in the middle of the city.
The image did not match Hamel's memory. It was inevitable, given that Kamash died three hundred years ago. Hamel's recollection of the giant’s final moment was crystal clear.
At the entrance to Helmuth was the Plains of Palmir. Kamash had attempted to demolish the massive barrier separating the continent from Helmuth to demonstrate his loyalty to the Demon King of Fury, his foster father.
Hundreds of giants, led by Kamash, stood against a force of merely a few thousand humans. Having an advantage over hundreds of giants with only a few thousand humans was impossible. Hundreds of giants, especially those empowered by the Demon King of Fury, were a formidable force. An average giant was able to effortlessly defeat dozens of knights each. Given that the hundreds of giants were empowered by Fury, even tens of thousands of knights would not have been their match.
The steps of Kamash and the giants caused earthquakes even days before they arrived in the Plains of Palmir. Although the number of those gathered to defend against the giants initially was greater than thousands, the growing, deafening sound of the giants’ footsteps had caused the numbers to dwindle.
A few thousand humans had been too few a number to block the hundreds of giants.
However, Kamash ultimately met his demise on the Plains of Palmir, his head severed. The hundreds of giants following him also perished. The vast plains were soaked red with the blood of giants.
It had only been possible because of how fiercely and desperately the humans fought.
Or rather, it was because Vermouth was there.
"I remember,” the specter murmured softly.
He recalled the intense memory of human desperation on that battlefield. At that time, Vermouth and his companions hadn't yet defeated any of the Demon Kings.
However, their trust in each other solidified as they crossed into Helmuth and marched towards the Demon King's castle.
Although they were awkward and clumsy when they first entered Helmuth, they had grown to respect and acknowledge each other by the time they returned to the Palmir Plains.
Therefore, they didn’t flee.
They believed they could halt the giants' advance.
They believed they could do it.
— Hamel.
— Yeah. What is it?
— The left arm. Can you handle it?
— I prefer the right. Isn't Kamash right-handed?
— Then, you can take care of his right arm.
— Why bother dividing left and right? I'll just do as I see fit.
Hamel and Vermouth confronted Kamash together. Vermouth didn’t have the Moonlight Sword then, but he did not need it to kill Kamash.
The specter remembered it vividly.
He used axes, swords, spears, and every weapon at his disposal to stop Kamash. He severed Kamash’s ankles, pierced his knees, and tore off his arms, making it impossible for him to walk or swing his arms. Then, he was decapitated.
Even after Kamash's death, the battle on the plains continued. The giants loyal to Kamash didn't retreat, even after their leader’s death.
Eventually, though, the battle concluded. Most giants were slain, and the survivors retreated into the Devildom.
Kamash's body also disappeared then. Some giants carried away his torso, and others brought back his severed head.
Perhaps it had been to create a tomb or present it to the Demon King of Fury. The specter remembered Hamel talking about it in an exhausted state, drenched in blood from head to toe.
'Will the soul be the same?' the specter wondered.
His head and body were back together, although there were new, different limbs replacing those left on the Palmir Plains. This was an undead created from Kamash's body, but how much of it truly remained Kamash?
To the specter, it seemed more like a chimera carefully crafted by Amelia. Yet, it was no laughing matter. This monster was stronger than Kamash when he was alive and more powerful than the high-ranking demons in this city.
'Will Molon come?'
He wasn’t certain, but Molon seemed to have a reason for being stuck in Lehainjar.
'Sienna will definitely come with you.'
Could the Saint of this era replace the deceased Anise? The specter smiled bitterly.
‘ Vermouth isn't here. ’
But that wouldn't be a major issue. The specter knew the strength of Eugene Lionheart. It was hard to imagine how much stronger he had become since a few years ago, even without Vermouth or Molon.
"Soon."
Hamel was coming.
"Eugene Lionheart is coming."
The specter stood up while murmuring to itself.
Hamel, or rather Eugene, would come to kill him without hesitation. He would slay everyone left in this city without any remorse.
The specter prepared a battlefield for Eugene to unleash his full strength, leaving only those in the city whose lives didn't matter.
Eugene would probably see his past on this battlefield. Demons, undead, demonic beasts, and humans who sold their souls. He would see enemies he desperately wanted to kill.
‘And me,’ the specter thought.
He had initially planned to die for Eugene’s sake. He would have done so if he had not met the Demon King of Incarceration.
But now, the specter no longer wanted to do the same.
'I can't do that.'
The specter closed its eyes, which were tinted with a dreary light.
Before Hamel arrived, he would need to meet them at least once.
***
The dark wizard Amelia Merwin instigated a rebellion. All her followers, the dark wizards, aided in the treason along with the demons from the Helmuth Empire, who had colluded with her before.
Amelia's homeland was Ravesta, the territory of Destruction. The demons of Ravesta joined in Nahama's rebellion, and many sealed demonic beasts were released in the process.
"…His Majesty the Demon King of Incarceration has expressed deep regret regarding the situation above.”
However, the Helmuth Empire could not resolve Nahama's crisis.
"The Demon King of Destruction stands behind Amelia Merwin. The Demon King of Destruction is a great demon whom even the Demon King of Incarceration cannot confront lightly. Moreover, Ravesta, the domain of Destruction, isn’t technically a territory of Helmuth…."
The lack of conviction in these words was apparent to Gavid Lindman as he spoke on behalf of the Demon King of Incarceration. It would be the same to anyone else on the continent.
Yet, that was acceptable.
"Demons who crossed over to Nahama to collude with Amelia will never again set foot in Helmuth,” he continued.
No other sanctions would be imposed.
"Helmuth will not interfere in Nahama's affairs."
This was the most crucial declaration. Helmuth would not assist Nahama nor the continent’s alliance. Helmuth and the Demon King of Incarceration would remain inactive.
'...It's hard to grasp the intentions,' Gavid thought.
It was already known that Nahama would become a battlefield. Although Helmuth wasn’t directly responsible for the situation, the Demon King of Incarceration had remained silent and passive. His inaction had essentially aided Nahama, or rather, Amelia Merwin.
He had remained silent despite already knowing the consequences. There was an expectation that the three centuries’ promise of peace would end with the war in Nahama. If Amelia Merwin transformed a few demons into Demon Kings, the three-hundred-year era of peace would inevitably end.
‘His Majesty the Demon King of Incarceration is behind it,' Gavid concluded.
Apart from everything else, the release of the sealed demonic beasts in Ravesta indicated the involvement of the Demon King of Incarceration.
Though officially it was stated that the subjects of Destruction released the beasts, Gavid knew too well this was impossible. The demonic beasts in Ravesta were sealed by the power of the Demon King of Incarceration. Even if the subjects of Destruction collectively self-destructed, they couldn't break the Demon King of Incarceration’s seals.
Yet, the demonic beasts were released. Moreover, the Demon King of Incarceration was even assisting Amelia in Hauria….
'Yet His Majesty decided... not to participate.'
Before Gavid could act on his discretion, he was given an imperial decree from the Demon King of Incarceration.
Helmuth would not act.
Originally, Gavid intended to get permission to deploy troops to Nahama. He had been preparing the Black Mist and the demon army for this purpose.
‘Helmuth will not act. In the end... His Majesty is waiting for the Hero to challenge Babel.’
Although it was irreverent to harbor any questions or doubts towards the Demon King of Incarceration, whom Gavid respected greatly, he couldn’t help but question.
‘Why is His Majesty so obsessed?’
This fixation was abnormal, almost fanatical. The Demon King of Incarceration had not been this obsessed, even with the Great Vermouth from three hundred years ago.
But why?
‘Eugene Lionheart.’
Gavid narrowed his eyes while continuing to read the prepared statement. "...We wish the Hauria Liberation Army good fortune."
It was a group of warriors drawn by the title of Hero associated with Eugene Lionheart or perhaps actively rallied by Eugene himself. Gavid looked at the list of the allied forces and couldn't help but think, ‘ I should have killed him when I first saw him.’
Back then, Gavid could have crushed him as easily as a bug.
But now, he had grown too powerful to be crushed.