by Park Saenal
“Don’t you know what is going on right now in the imperial palace?”
“I’m sorry. We don’t know what’s going on in the imperial palace. We are worried because a red light suddenly burst out but two duke and the Five Pillars are there. We dare not question or worry about it.”
“I see. Continue with what you were doing.”
“Yes!”
The knights hurriedly opened the way and Grid ran past them to the imperial palace. Grid thought about it, ‘No matter how I look, that son of a bitch Edan is fooling around.’
Edan shook off the soldiers’ search and infiltrated the imperial palace to attack the emperor. The emperor exploded his red energy during the confrontation, and this influence turned the capital red. Grid could guess up to here.
The one question was if Edan could do any harm to the emperor. As the knights said a while ago, the emperor was protected by the Five Pillars while Grenhal and Morse were visiting the emperor. Above all, the emperor himself was the strongest. Even if Edan was buffed by the obvious cliche in his role as a villain, it seemed impossible for him to break through these forces and harm the emperor.
‘Thus, I need to hurry up.’
He didn’t think the situation would already be finished, but he had to go quickly or he wouldn’t be able to get the emperor’s favor. Grid increased his speed. Unfortunately, this female body was unfamiliar and uncomfortable. His limbs were long, but his hips were too big and his chest shook when he ran. He couldn’t maintain his balance. Grid could grab them every time he jumped, but he was worried about eyes and felt guilty toward Basara.
‘Eh.’
Should he care about these small problems in such a desperate situation? Grid just grabbed his chest and started to run. The texture that was conveyed was… Omitted.
***
‘How terrible.’
The scenery of the imperial palace was more serious than the capital’s. Every corridor and pillar was sprayed with red blood, and the groans of the dying soldiers echoed like a long song.
“D-Duke Basara…”
“The Red Knights… The Red Knights betrayed…”
“His Majesty is in danger…”
The soldiers who discovered Grid coughed up blood. Grid, who learned of the situation, equipped the Ideal Dagger and used Quick Movements.
‘The emperor failed to kill the Red Knights and was hit.’
The skills of the Red Knights weren’t ordinary. Once the single digit knights joined forces, they could compete with the dukes. Additionally, the Red Knights themselves had many people. Edan also had the magic machines unit, so the Five Pillars and the dukes couldn’t easily stop his momentum.
This was an opportunity for Grid. Grid accelerated through the corridors. His transcendent senses were guiding him. As he got closer to the audience hall, he could hear the sound of friction, explosions, and metal colliding. Grid checked his condition after confirming that the duration of Quick Movements had ended.
‘It is perfect.’
The only skill on cooldown was Quick Movements. All skills were available, his health and mana were maintained at the maximum, and only a small amount of stamina was consumed.
‘Before the Five Pillars wipe out the Red Knights, I will break through the Red Knights and give the emperor a vivid impression.’
Grid made a plan and took off the skin mask. There was no need to expose the skin mask to the emperor or the Five Pillars. Moreover, it was necessary to reveal his identity. If they asked how he came to the imperial palace, he would have to speak with the dukes and answer in the most positive way possible. He finally got closer to the scene of combat.
At the end of the long corridor, knights in red armor could be seen. So far, it was as Grid had expected. Then he saw Grandmaster Zikfrector and Chensler fighting each other. The members of the Five Pillars that Grid were familiar with were fighting each other.
‘What?’
One of them was on Edan’s side? Or was there some type of disagreement and they were just fighting for a moment? Grid’s confused gaze turned reflexively into the audience hall. Then he saw it. It was the sight of Edan’s sword being pointed to the emperor. Grenhal and Morse were on the ground in a mess while Bain, another of the Five Pillars, was wounded.
‘Did Edan do this?’
What mattered now wasn’t grasping the situation. He had to save the emperor as soon as possible. In order to achieve harmony with the empire, the emperor who favored the dukes had to survive. How should he do this? Grid was daunted by the battle between the grandmaster and Chensler. The two monsters, who he didn’t think he could win against even if he used Blackening, were fighting in the middle of the corridor. Grid couldn’t break through them to reach the audience hall.
‘Braham, do you intend to wake up?’ He anxiously called out to Braham, but there was no answer. Braham, who had fallen asleep, seemed like he wouldn’t wake up for a long time.
-Grid! Don’t interfere! A whisper flew toward Grid.
The sender was Zibal. Grid turned his gaze and saw Zibal standing with the riders. Then Grid’s face filled with frustration. He felt desperate because even if he broke through the Five Pillars and the Red Knights, there were still the magic machines.
“Knight Summoning!”
That’s why he summoned Piaro. He was convinced that he had to pull out the strongest hand. He also remembered that Piaro was one of the people related to the empire.
“Piaro!”
[Your knight ‘Piaro’ has arrived by your side.]
It was a notification that came up without a pause. Grid affirmed it as he stared at the back of Piaro, who responded immediately to his call.
‘Piaro won’t die.’
He would make sure of it. The determined Grid gave an order in front of everyone. “Piaro, I’m sorry but let’s save the emperor.”
He surely wouldn’t be willing. He would surely be hesitant. This was what Grid thought.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
To Grid’s surprise, Piaro immediately agreed to the order. He pulled out a hand plow from among various farming equipment hanging from his waist and broke through the corridor.
“Piaro…!” The Red Knights cried out. None of them dared to block the path ahead of Piaro. Only one person was different.
“Damn! Don’t interfere!” Only the player Zibal summoned his magic machine and stood in front of the entrance to the audience hall. A giant and majestic magic machine came in contact with the high ceiling of the imperial palace as it stabbed at Piaro with a pillar-like spear.
“Free Farming 2nd Style. Super Growth.”
A soybean tree grew through the ground in an instant and blocked it. Not only did it block Raiders’ spear, but it also grew vines that bound Raiders’ arms and legs. Zibal became contemplative at the sight of Raiders who stopped moving for a while.
“This is crazy!”
In the past, Zibal had already been beaten by Piaro. For Zibal, ‘Reidan’s crazy farmer’ was imprinted in him as the strongest. However, he had forgotten. It was caused by witnessing the battle between the grandmaster and Chensler. Shortly after witnessing their battle, Zibal became relatively relaxed and fearless as he faced Piaro for their long reunion.
This was the result. The operating time was so short that even one second was precious. Raiders was tied up for three seconds, and this allowed Piaro to break through. Moreover, Piaro had already entered the audience hall and stopped Edan from killing the emperor.
Saharan’s sword and a sickle collided. Piaro’s appearance, which hadn’t changed since he left the empire, shocked Edan and the dukes.
“You have become a legend and broken the shackles…” A bitter voice filled with complex emotions—Emperor Juander’s voice echoed in the hall.
On the other hand, Grid…
“Amazing. You infiltrated here so easily with your skills?”
He was confronted by the grandmaster. Unlike the tense Grid, the grandmaster was smiling.
“There is a lot of talent. I’m becoming more and more excited.”
“What do you expect from me?” Grid was in a position where he couldn’t act.
Asmophel, Mercedes, Noll, Jude, and the 10 meritorious retainers were available, but he had to be cautious because he wasn’t in a position to bring them all out. First of all, Asmophel and Mercedes were escorting the previous generation of Red Knights and weren’t suitable to be called. Noll was another species, and Grid was afraid this would antagonize the emperor. Meanwhile, Jude was too weak. Most of all, Grid could only guarantee the life of one person. He only had one White Peach.
Grid decided to talk to the grandmaster, who was interested in him, and further explore the situation.
“Tell me. What are you expecting from me?” Grid asked again.
“Won’t you be the emperor?” The grandmaster returned with a question.
Grid suddenly knew that all of today’s events were caused by the grandmaster.
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Chapter 1080
“Won’t you be the emperor?”
Cats became tigers after three years of military life. They could read the timing just looking at the movement of the soldiers. It wasn’t hard to know what was going on after Grid had been with Lauel for a few years.
“Grandmaster, you betrayed the emperor and stood on Edan’s side.”
“The expression ‘betrayal’ isn’t appropriate. I’m just exercising my right.”
“Your right?”
The grandmaster was very kind to Grid. He told his story in great detail, “A long time ago, a man came to me and offered me a deal. He asked me to make him the emperor. He said that if he became emperor, he would surely fulfill my heart’s desire.”
“That person…”
“Yes, it was Saharan. I made him emperor, but coincidentally, he failed to keep his promise to me. The promise he failed to keep was to be fulfilled by his descendants. However, time passed, and the imperial family forgot about their promise to me, reaching the present point.” The grandmaster’s gaze turned to inside the audience hall.
In the aftermath of the free farming, the audience hall was gradually becoming farmland. Edan and Piaro could be seen fighting among the ripened rice.
The grandmaster pointed to Edan’s sword. “That sword is a token of the promise. Saharan gave me a sword that contained his red energy, which accelerated his death. Saharan told me. If the imperial family breaks their agreement with me, I will prove my qualifications with this sword and ascend to the throne myself. Then he made policies to fulfill my desire in the long term.”
Grid listened to the friendly explanation and stabbed at the core, “Who are you?”
At this moment…
“…!” Everyone in the audience hall had wide eyes. All of them wondered about the grandmaster’s desire. Based on that desire, they could infer the grandmaster’s identity. However, Grid asked about the identity of the grandmaster. Asking for this person’s identity without even mentioning the contents of the desire…? It wasn’t prudent. The grandmaster wouldn’t answer. People expected Grid’s question to be ignored.
It was as expected.
“…” The grandmaster was also a bit baffled. The question of his desire was expected, but the question of his identity was unexpected.
Grid shrugged. “Won’t you ask me to fulfill your desire if I become the emperor? I can’t make a deal with someone I don’t know.”
“Kukuk…” The grandmaster burst out laughing. It was extremely rare for him to express his emotions, and this was the first time the emperor had ever seen the grandmaster laughing, despite having spent decades with him. “…The only sinner of the seven.” Sorrow permeated his bored eyes. The grandmaster’s clear eyes stared straight at Grid. “The incarnation of the betrayer, who was blinded by the light and turned a blind eye to the crisis of his companions who couldn’t see the darkness. That is who I am.”
“…?!”
It was like lightning striking Grid’s head. Grid knew the identity of those who were ‘blinded by the light and couldn’t see the darkness’.
‘The seven malignant saints…!’
It couldn’t be… The grandmaster’s identity was the incarnation of the seven malignant saints? It was unimaginable for Grid, who had long known that they were sealed between the ‘ground and hell.’ Grid had stiffened completely while the other people were scrambling. It was the sound of their thoughts trying to catch up. It was rare for anyone to know the truth of the seven malignant saints, even if they searched the entire world. None of the people in the room could understand the conversation between Grid and the grandmaster.
In the midst of the turmoil, the grandmaster said, “I wanted to remove my guilt, so I did a great deal of work. In an attempt to overcome the terrible boredom, I gained time by pushing this present body into the ranks of a transcendent. I studied how to save the incarnations of my colleagues who confronted the gods and lost the ‘past life qualifications,’ unlike me. The reason why so many other races on the continent were captured and experimented with, why I needed by-products of a great demon and my desire for the evil eye… It was all part of this research. No matter how long I spent on it, I couldn’t make a difference. It was impossible to fully overcome the boredom, so I made mistakes at every critical moment. However, I know the cause of my colleagues’ failure. The biggest reason for the failure was that they didn’t rely on the ‘expelled’ gods.”
“…?”
Who were the expelled gods? The chaos inside Grid increased. The other people’s unrest was also growing. No one directly linked the grandmaster to the seven malignant saints, but an increasing number of people noticed that the grandmaster had been ‘something other than human from the beginning.’
The grandmaster read the situation and lowered his voice. As he whispered into Grid’s ears, his voice contained a deep annoyance. It was troublesome. The grandmaster wanted to beat everything. These desires started to dominate him.
“I felt great hope when I found out that you have the power of Taren.”
“…”
“The answer lies in the Abyss. Become the emperor. Become the emperor, explore the Abyss, and trace the whereabouts of the expelled gods. The Second Seven Evils War will save the world from the fallen gods.”
[★Hidden Quest★ The Sixth Evil’s Proposal has occurred!]
[The Sixth Evil’s Proposal]
[★ Hidden Quest ★
The sixth evil Zik, who has the sin of sloth, is suggesting that you become the emperor.
If you accept the offer, you will become the new master of the Saharan Empire!
Quest Clear Condition: Accept Zikfrector’s offer.
Quest Clear Rewards: The Saharan Empire.]
[Would you like to accept the quest?]
Grid had experienced countless hidden quests, but he had never seen a hidden quest on such a scale. This was a quest to devour the whole empire. Grid naturally…
“I don’t want to.” He refused it.
“…?” The grandmaster was shocked. He had spoken honestly and hadn’t expected Grid to reject the offer.
Grid explained, “If I become the emperor, won’t there be rebellions all over the empire? How can I handle it? In the first place, I can’t lead such a big country, and I don’t have the manpower.”
If Grid—who wasn’t of Saharan’s blood—was crowned the emperor, many nobles would revolt and an era of war would begin. Grid and the Overgeared Kingdom would be swept up in the war on a daily basis. By the end, the empire would be divided into dozens of pieces, and the security of the Overgeared Kingdom couldn’t be guaranteed. It meant that he was more likely to lose everything and suffer.
The grandmaster shook his head. “The thing you should pay attention to is the exploration of the Abyss, not the management of the empire. The empire isn’t a matter of concern at all.”
“What on earth are you saying? Rather, it is none of my business what you
do.”
It was true that Grid respected the seven malignant saints who fought the gods for humanity. This didn’t mean he intended to sacrifice himself for them. In the first place, Grid didn’t want to be tied to the seven malignant saints. He could lose everything overnight if he drew the anger of the gods to himself. Grid had already resolved to be neutral after going through the Crossroad of Good and Evil quest and the Hexetia incident.
“Your Majesty the Emperor! I’m on your side!” Grid shouted.
“…Turning away even after knowing the truth.” The grandmaster was furious.
Grid hurriedly cried out as the grandmaster’s face distorted like a demon, “No, I don’t want to be hostile to you. I’m just going to stop Edan’s treason.”
“It is just sophistry. Edan is my agent unless you accept my offer. Don’t you know that going against him is going against me?”
“Ah…”
This was really upsetting. Harmony with the empire was really important, but was it right to be hostile to an incarnation of the seven malignant saints? He might just be an incarnation, but the seven malignant saints were the seven malignant saints. The grandmaster’s power was likely to be far beyond what Grid expected. It was terrible to imagine what would happen if they fought.
Then it happened while Grid was feeling restless.
“Shut up, Zikfrector!” Edan yelled after easily defeating Piaro. The prince stared at the grandmaster with red eyes. “Weren’t you trying to throw me away as soon as an opportunity came? I’m your agent…? Then you should consult me! I’m not a pushover!”
“…!”
In response to Edan’s wrath, Saharan’s sword started to exert a stronger force than before. The power was so great that it cracked Piaro’s sickle which was made from Belial’s by-products. The strength that had been absorbed from materials all over the capital finally started to manifest. It was great enough to overwhelm Piaro, who had yet to achieve a new ground in Natural State. At this moment, Edan was strong enough to threaten the grandmaster with his extreme temper.
“Zikfrector! I’ll kill you first!”
“Eh?”
It was an unexpected development. Grid’s eyes lit up when he witnessed Edan rushing to the grandmaster, and he hurriedly left his position. The grandmaster’s sword and Saharan’s sword collided, blowing up the imperial palace. The imperial guards and Red Knights were thrown into confusion by the powerful shockwave.