Chapter 695 – Game of Thrones (1) #PART2
AAU Korea Branch’s Office.
Even with Hoyeol’s arrival, Nam Cheolmin and Park Minjae could not bring themselves to rejoice. Nam Cheolmin’s blood-rushed fist trembled. He didn’t want to admit it, but…
…I dare to doubt.
He couldn’t accept it.
Mr. Hoyeol’s actions.
As Agares had said—what exactly had been gained?
Seoul, turned into Agares’s dominion, was steadily racking up enormous damage in real time. Reports flowed in through the AAU’s channels. Park Minjae’s trembling voice still rang vividly in his ears.
-“Word is spreading quickly that if you bow your head toward Agares, you can survive. Judging by the community responses, it actually seems to be working. Should we even call this… fortunate?”
Was it a blessing in misfortune?
I don’t know.
At the very least, it was fortunate that innocent Seoul citizens were not being indiscriminately slaughtered. But Agares’s malice-laden goodwill was plunging the city into even greater chaos.
Even the unshakable Park Minjae had his head in his hands.
“Truly, the Ten Thrones are incomprehensible beings.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“If a demon, then act like a demon! Like the countless ones who tormented us before—demand sacrifices, instill fear. If they did that, at least we could respond using our experience. But this…!”
It was confusing. Who was truly acting for Seoul’s sake?
Of course, the two of them hadn’t completely lost their balance. No—they couldn’t afford to. The camera lens captured Hoyeol’s figure.
Nam Cheolmin forced himself to speak.
“Now that Mr. Hoyeol is here, this atmosphere will change.”
But something was strange. Normally, you would have unleashed your trademark barbed words. Even in the face of Agares’s provocations, you said nothing.
“Behold, hypocrite! See who the true king that Seoul desires really is!”
Agares’s roar sent tremors through the city. From the open windows came cheers—a frequency that grated unbearably on the ear.
“Agares! Our king…!!”
Park Minjae grimaced.
“I know it’s the influence of incantation, but still…”
And besides, Agares’s underlings were spread throughout the city. Those who did not worship might lose their lives. Even knowing it was an unavoidable act, hearing it was unbearable.
Nam Cheolmin took it one step further.
The Arcana Continent’s Chronicle system.
The one exerting overwhelming influence as Seoul’s king was Agares. Even if Mr. Hoyeol defeated him, according to the Arcana system…
Mr. Hoyeol cannot become king.
At best, he would end up as a [Tyrant].
The difference between tyrant and king. To both Nam Cheolmin and Nam Taemin, that was a distant domain. Even Cheolmin couldn’t say exactly what the difference was—but one thing he knew for certain:
The people do not follow a tyrant.
Which meant, even if Mr. Hoyeol struck Agares down, the chants of worship echoing across Seoul would not easily fade.
Then…
What would remain for Mr. Hoyeol?
All he had done for reality’s sake?
Countless deeds, too many to number on both hands. From the moment he first made his presence known during Count Ascura’s update until now. Without him, reality would never have survived as it had.
And yet, instead of gratitude…
Cheolmin swallowed down the words repaying grace with betrayal.
“Mr. Cheolmin, is something troubling you?”
“…No, nothing at all.”
Saying such grim things aloud would only pour out negativity. Cheolmin calmed himself and continued to watch the situation. Above all else—
Hisagi.
Hisagi’s condition was terribly bad. Likely a direct result of Agares’s control. His body writhed on the ground, spasming as though in seizure.
Something’s wrong.
Cheolmin bit his lip hard.
Even if Seoul is split between hardliners and moderates…
There was no reason for the city to be this quiet. Even if the Magic Tower’s mages could not participate, hadn’t many powerful factions already established themselves in reality?
The Yusra Kingdom. The Holy Land Muon of the Goddess Church. Skal and Frostnax. Mary and the Twilight Descendants of the Mage Clan. Even the Archmage, Jesse Heinness…
Where are they all, and what are they doing?
He felt resentment rising bit by bit.
First toward his own powerlessness.
Second toward the countless factions he’d just listed.
And last of all—
“…Why won’t you tell us anything?”
Mr. Hoyeol.
As if to echo Cheolmin’s heart, the skies over Seoul began to stain. Darker and darker, blood-red. Deeper and deeper, into chaos. As though to proclaim this place the domain of the Ten Thrones.
Park Minjae’s face went pale.
“E-even for the Ten Thrones, isn’t this too much?!”
Seoul was transforming into something surreal. As though to trample even the last shred of hope. Agares’s voice came, like a whisper.
“Is this the scenery you desired, Lee Hoyeol?”
“!!”
Nam Cheolmin and Park Minjae.
…gulp.
Both swallowed dryly, in unison. Beyond the situation itself, they were simply curious about the answer to that question. At last, your voice was heard for the first time.
“Scenery, is it?”
In your own style.
“So it still looks that way to you.”
S-still looks that way?
…Wait.
In that moment, the sense that you had just denied everything began to melt away. Information surfaced unbidden in Cheolmin’s analyst’s mind.
Yes. Scenery. More precisely—the surreal scenery of Seoul.
“Branch Manager Park.”
“…I’m listening.”
“What did you say earlier?”
“What do you mean? Suddenly…?”
“You said it, didn’t you.”
Cheolmin’s lips twitched upward.
“That even for the Ten Thrones, this is too much.”
“Yes? Yes, I did say that…”
“I see.”
Even for the Ten Thrones, even with [Authority] active, the way Agares was manipulating Seoul was excessively surreal. As though his ideal had simply become reality.
Cheolmin knew the means that could make that possible.
“My efforts to understand you, Mr. Hoyeol, weren’t wasted.”
Yes, because Mr. Hoyeol had always been the [Demon Hunter].
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A grand exorcism ritual.
If it’s the higher counterpart of an exorcism—[Exorcist]—then it’s possible.
That was the trap I had prepared for Agares. I swore before the closed eyes of Harkon—I would lose nothing more to demons.
My oath was never light.
Would someone like me, even for the sake of the title of ‘Tyrant,’ hand Seoul over to Agares?
At this moment, everything happening in Seoul was nothing more than Agares’s ideal, unfolding within my ritual.
To halt Seoul’s time? That’s still impossible.
Yes.
All of this was the result of me deliberately loosening my grip on the ritual’s control. Of course, one thing remained unchanged.
Perhaps realizing it too late, Agares spat his rebuttal at me.
“So that’s it. But my hatred for you is no lie!!”
Agares was not the only one inside this exorcism ritual.
Seoul.
Everyone was sharing the same rite. In that sense, Agares was right. Seoul’s hatred toward me would remain even after the exorcism’s success.
But I no longer overthought it.
-“No matter what you do, these sisters will be on your side.”
Thanks to that, I had certainty.
So I will hunt you, Agares. No—king of Seoul.
“So you are still the second throne’s Demon King.”
I immediately seized full control of the ritual.
“Your mouth and your resolve—”
“What?”
“Compared to the first throne’s Demon King, Bael, they are light as a feather.”
“You…!!!”
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