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Chapter 172

Joshua seemed frustrated when he realized it, but honestly, he wasn’t that surprised. If he didn’t have even an iota of expectations that things could take this turn, then he wouldn’t have sent the Death Knight Duke Altsma there in advance.

‘The Crombell Family has an overwhelming advantage over the Pontier Family in terms of military might, wealth, as well as the quality and number of their knights. In that case, dropping the Wild King Duke Altsma into the fray would be akin to a rainstorm in the middle of a drought.’

However, Joshua clenched his fists.

‘I know how strong Cain, Icarus, and Duke Altsma are. It won’t be free, but the Pontier Family should be able to somehow survive through the siege with Cain, Icarus, and Duke Altsma on their side…’

’I’m supposed to be there by the time the Mercenary King made his move, and based on the previous timeline, my plan should have been flawless…’

Joshua frowned. The reason he was so confident about his plan was because of Akshuller’s presence.

Back then, the Mercenary King remained in Reinhardt during the entirety of the Reinhardt Masters’ Battle. Akshuller won and challenged the Mercenary King, which plunged the Mercenary Guild into chaos.

‘I was too naive…’ Joshua criticized himself. He should have known that the Mercenary King would immediately make a move after Akshuller was forced out of the competition by Ulabis.

For the time being, Joshua had decided to observe. After all, the news of Akshuller being acknowledged as a Master would surely send ripples that would interrupt the timeline. But the spiral of events was out of his expectations.

‘It seems like I have been too confident of myself.’ Joshua shook his head as he picked up speed.

‘On my way back. I must find Ash before anything else, and finally, I just have to heal Princess Serciarin because she’s the only one who knows its location.’

Joshua’s eyes shimmered as he confirmed his goals once more, and he started moving even faster to his destination.

He stopped in front of a massive building in the middle of Reinhardt. It was the headquarters of Moon Gate, the best intelligence agency on the continent.

‘I need enough information to make plans. From now on, there will be no more half-measures,’ Joshua muttered to himself before entering the building.

***

There was a beautiful castle towering over every other building in Reinhardt like it was a crown jewel. At the summit of the castle sat a middle-aged man with a lion’s mane of hair and bright eyes. He was the Lion King, Ryan Geiger, the current lord of Reinhardt and one of the Twelve Superhumans.

“Only the finals remain. How much longer do you have to serve me as my subordinate?”

“...” The man standing in front of the Lion King responded with a smile before muttering, “The lord of this castle represents the whole of Reinhardt. I’d prefer that its future owner be stronger than the current owner, if at all possible.”

“I’m already a toothless tiger, then? It’s a good thing I’m still the ruler.” Ryan shook his head.

The man’s smile widened as he said, “Nagasin’s will is an inheritance for the ages, and it is my honor to continue the heritage of Reinhardt.”

“Nagasin’s hammer…” The Lion King nodded. “Might is right here, and as long as one is talented enough, one can become the ruler of Reinhardt. This is definitely a unique place, considering its neutrality, and I’m sure we both can feel its allure.”

“It is indeed unique. No nation is insane enough to try implementing something like this.”

In Reinhardt, the champion was the ruler. It was unlike the other nations on Igrant, where one’s path in life was decided on their bloodline. Those born without noble blood were seen as livestock.

“Well, a free knight like myself can’t think of a better idea than this.” Ryan laughed.

The nations of Igrant had always been hierarchical. Free knights were considered free, but there was no way for them to bypass the hierarchy within society that even the strongest nobles couldn’t bypass to become a ruler.

If it hadn’t been the case until now, then wars would have been endless between nations. In addition, it was incredibly dangerous for a noble to try and topple their monarch and take control without arousing the ire of every other power in the nation.

Eventually, Ryan asked, “As the host of the finals, who do you believe will become the Champion?”

The man thought about it. However, it didn’t take him long to answer.

“He has shown us a wonderful job so far, particularly when he defended himself against that storm in the semifinals, so I think Joshua Sanders from Avalon can become the Champion. After all, he has exceeded all expectations, but…” The man hesitated.

He seemed doubtful about Joshua’s chances of winning as he continued. “His Highness Ulabis is different from Joshua’s opponents so far. If Akshuller were in Group A, the final match would have been a rematch…”

“So you’re saying that Joshua Sanders is a tier lower than the Mighty Akshuller?”

The man nodded without hesitation. “Knight of Steel Babelon, and even one of the Seven Mages of the Magic Tower. Joshua’s opponents so far didn’t manage to live up to their monikers.”

“...” Upon hearing that, the Lion King fell into deep thought.

“What do you think about His Highness Ulabis?” asked the man.

The Lion King responded, “He’s amazing. In an honest, one-on-one fight, I will have to give up an arm to win.”

“...!” The man\'s eyes widened upon hearing that.

‘Am I really talking to one of the Twelve?’

The Lion King, Ryan Geiger, was one of the continent’s Twelve Superhumans.

“He only just became a Master. Is he really that…”

“Yes. His unquenchable flame worries me. If my eyes hadn’t deceived me, then I’m sure that he still has more power in store.”

“That’s…” The man’s eyes widened once more. He couldn’t help but start doubting whether he was truly talking to that mighty Lion King or not.

‘Is he really the Lion King?!’ The man let out a deep breath. The Lion King, his liege, had never been the type to lie. On top of that, he was immensely talented—even compared to the Nine Stars. As such, the man had no choice but to believe him.

“Whew, I suppose I’ll have to renegotiate things. Anyway, repairing our coliseum is definitely going to cost us a fortune.”

“Oh?” The Lion King chuckled and asked, “You’re worried about that?”

“Well, first of all, I am in charge of the funds for the entirety of the Masters’ Battle…” the man started. However, he trailed off and fell into contemplation, looking a bit hesitant before saying with a resolute voice, “I hope Joshua Sanders becomes the Champion.”

“Oh?” The Lion King was intrigued. The man had just expressed his own objective opinion, but he was actually being biased toward a contestant whose chances of becoming the champion weren’t that high according to the man himself?

“This has to be the first time you made your wishes known,” the Lion King remarked.

“This is just my personal opinion, and I know that it will not have any effect on the outcome of the finals.”

“Well, don’t take it so seriously, I was just curious about what you’re thinking.” The Lion King shrugged before saying, “It seems that Joshua Sanders is adept at capturing many hearts.”

“...” The man remained silent at that.

The Lion King\'s eyes brightened as he said, “I’m going to express my opinion as well. To be honest, I don’t think His Highness Ulabis will win, I just didn’t say anything until now.”

“Is that so?” said the man. He seemed unfazed, as if he expected this turn of events.

“Hohoho.”

Seeing his reaction, the Lion King boisterously laughed.

***

“Joshua! How long has it been?”

As soon as Joshua walked through the door, a voice greeted him.

“You’re always around whenever I visit Moon Gate. I think it’s safe for me to assume that you are the one that has been tasked to deal with me?” asked Joshua.

“Can’t it be because I adore you a lot?” Zero acted coy.

Joshua conveniently ignored Zero’s actions. “You seem to have a reasonable amount of authority here. Looks like you’ve attained a rather prominent position.”

Zero froze. He revealed a fox-like smile and asked, “What makes you think that?”

“There are two reasons,” Joshua said without any hesitation. “First is that you’re currently in the Headquarters of Moon Gate rather than in Moon Gate’s branch in Arcadia.”

Zero seemed disappointed as he remarked. “If that’s what you really think, then I am a bit disappointed. Internal reassignments are more common than you think. It’s the same even at the headquarters.”

“Of course, that could be the case. However, there is another reason why it can\'t be an internal reassignment.”

At that, Zero grinned. “Well, you’ve already come this far, so why don’t you tell me?”

Joshua returned Zero’s smile in kind before finally speaking up, “There is no way an ordinary branch manager would be responsible for greeting someone like me.”

“...” Zero’s grin froze on his face.

However, Joshua’s next remarks rendered him speechless.

“Moon Gate is a large organization, so there is no way that their customer service would be terrible, am I right?”

“It has been a long time since we last met, and after so many years, it seems that you have learned how to coat your words with honey. You were so smooth just now that you made my heart flutter,” said Zero.

Zero leaned closer to Joshua before adding, “Master is here.”

Stop.

“Master? Are you talking about the owner of Moon Gate?”

“Yes, my master is the owner of Moon Gate.”

Joshua was astonished as he asked, “They’re here?”

He had done business and many deals with Moon Gate during his previous life, but the identity of Moon Gate’s owner had always been shrouded in mystery. It wasn’t really strange because Moon Gate was created that way.

“Follow me. I’ll lead the way.”

“...” Joshua directed an odd gaze at Zero, but he still quickly followed after the latter.

Their destination was a place that greeted not a single outsider in recent years—the fifth floor of Moon Gate’s Headquarters.