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Side Story Chapter 55

“Urgh…!” Zero retched.

“Are you okay?” Joshua asked.

“I-I’m fine. I’m just a little nauseous. Mass Teleportation is one of the most advanced magic spells in the world, so I never thought I would experience it.” Zero slowly stood up. “Her Majesty Iceline must be the most versatile queen consort on the continent. From what I heard, most of the artifacts that the Magic Tower’s mages distribute were invented by Her Majesty Iceline.”

Joshua nodded. “My Iceline is quite remarkable.”

Although Iceline’s expression didn’t change, Joshua saw that her chin rose subtly.

“…Haha.” Joshua chuckled quietly and turned his attention back to his surroundings. “Anyhow, Lilith is in a place like this?”

“Yes, this is the perfect place to avoid people’s attention.”

“You do have a point…” Joshua took a look around them. He was quite familiar with the place. The monsters that lived in this place were several times stronger than their kin elsewhere.

“So she chose the Black Monster Forest, huh? It’s close to the border of the Hubalt Empire—she really did pick the ideal location,” Joshua muttered to himself.

However, there was no guarantee that anyone could survive here. These monsters, whose skins were as black as the forest, were notorious across the entire continent. Even if the Silver-eyed Ghost Sword had surpassed the level of a Class A knight long ago…

“…Wait, did she manifest an authority?” Joshua mumbled.

Zero flinched, immediately settling Joshua’s question.

Power incited greed, but even without one of the Four Angels’ authorities, Lilith Aphrodite could not be taken lightly. In fact, there was a high chance Lilith had made preparations in advance for a rebellion, given the precedent of the Martial Emperor.

Regardless, she was helpless and a fugitive and had ended up in Avalon, a faraway foreign country. Throughout everything, the Moon Gate had remained loyal to Lilith during the power struggle in the Hubalt Empire over two decades ago. But what about now?

“They now have concrete justification to become as influential as the pro-pope faction and persuade the people from that faction and the Moon Gate’s members to join their side,” Joshua asked. “This is just a hunch, but that justification seems to be closely related to Lilith. Am I wrong?”

A war without justification was a coup, not a revolution. Without acquiring legitimacy afterward, it was highly likely that someone else would start a rebellion again and take away the throne. On top of that, it was difficult to be acknowledged as a legitimate government by other countries.

“There is one type of person that Hubalt ostracizes more than any other country on the continent does—and that is the people who are related to demonic power,” Joshua said.

“…You’re correct.”

“So?”

“Lilith has manifested an authority related to the Demon Spirit,” Zero bitterly answered.

“Mmm…” Joshua grunted. He couldn’t hide his reaction.

The Hubalt Empire’s other name was the Holy Empire, so it was obvious what was going to happen if someone manifested the authority of a god linked to the Demon Realm.

“It was a matter we couldn’t hide. Cardinal Erman, Lilith’s father, was the most promising candidate to become the next pope, so he tried to explain the situation. But it was inadequate to calm the people down,” Zero explained.

“Of course that was.”

“We’re only at her hideout, so how did you deduce that much?”

“Even if she’s surpassed the level of a Class A knight, the Black Monster Forest isn’t really a place for a woman to live alone. In fact, look around us right now.” Joshua gestured with his chin.

They had been busy conversing, so Zero hadn’t realized that they were in the center of Black Monster Forest. Animal growls emerged from all directions, followed quickly by the monsters that produced them. There were about a hundred monsters of various kinds; from the relatively common low-ranking monsters like goblins and kobolds to intermediate-ranking monsters like trolls, whose every body part was essential in making potions.

Iceline stepped forward. “I’ll do it this time.”

She was one of the three Class 7 mages on the continent. Both Zero and Joshua readily stepped back.

Out of nowhere, a sonorous voice objected:

“No, let me take care of them, Your Majesty.”

Long silver hair fluttered in the air. Although her entrance was like a gentle breeze, she struck with the fury of a storm.

“Lilith!” Zero shouted, shocked.

A beautiful woman, no older than her thirties, stood in front of the trio with her sword straight. She was Lilith Aphrodite, the Silver-Eyed Ghost Sword and the First Little Star, one of the most likely to become a Star, just like Joshua.

Her aura undulated. The monsters reacted to the wave of murderous intent by mobbing her.

Lilith’s sword started to dance beautifully in the sky like cherry blossoms flying through the air. Her silvery aura attacks rained down on the horde of monsters. Astonishingly, her sword seemed to produce a woman’s scream as it cleaved through the air.

Silver-Eyed Ghost Sword, Fourth Secret Technique: Shredding Ghost Wail.

As the monsters were slaughtered, the air was filled with the grisly sound of their flesh being obliterated. In a matter of minutes, all of the hundred monsters had been reduced to pulp.

“…She’s one hell of a reliable ally,” Joshua murmured.

“When did you come back?” Lilith slowly approached Joshua and the others, tying her hair into a ponytail as she walked.

“It hasn’t been long.”

“For some reason, you surprise me every time we meet. Has it been about fifteen years?”

“Has that been that long?” Joshua tilted his head.

“Yeah, it has. The last time we met was when you came to ask me where the coldest region of the continent is.”

Joshua smiled. The process of destroying the Demon Spirit was smooth sailing thanks to her.

“I heard what happened,” he said. “Zero asked for my help.”

“…He shouldn’t have.” Lilith’s eyes narrowed.

Just as expected, someone as strong as Lilith instantly noticed Joshua’s condition.

“Have you lost your power?” Lilith asked.

“Something like that.”

“It’s okay. I didn’t plan on asking for your help in the first place.”

“That hurts,” Joshua jokingly replied.

“Don’t misunderstand me. I just think it’s meaningless to retake the country by asking for the help of the ruler of a foreign country.”

Lilith was a wise woman, something Joshua knew quite well.

“How about we help each other instead of a one-sided deal?”

“What…?”

“I plan to hand over the throne to my children.”

Lilith\'s eyes widened. “A-Are you serious?”

“It’s time for me to enjoy my retirement. Although it’s a little late, I should take care of the people who went through a lot for me.”

“Wait, then who is going to inherit the throne? From what I remember, Avalon has no crown prince.”

“You know, that’s a diplomatic discourtesy,” Joshua abruptly said.

“Excuse me?”

“It’s a diplomatic discourtesy to ask about another country’s confidential information.”

“Ah, I’m sorry. I didn’t know that was confidential…” Lilith trailed off.

“I’m joking.”

Lilith’s distress collapsed into a crumpled expression of annoyance.

“There’s the Lilith I know. Why don’t you act as usual?” Joshua asked.

“…Hmph, ‘act as usual’, huh?” Lilith put her hand on her waist. “But I can’t seduce a married man, can’t I? Your wife is standing right there with her eyes on us,” she said in a coquettish voice.

“Ah, that isn’t why I said it.”

“I was also joking.” Lilith chuckled quietly. She ignored Iceline’s glare. “So what’s your answer to my question?”

“I haven’t made up my mind.”

“You still haven’t come to your senses. Don’t you think sticking to your indefinite position is what caused another civil war in Avalon?”

“This civil war was inevitable. It’s the side effect of me hastily overthrowing the previous government—even though I had a good reason. On top of that, the commander of the northern rebel army, which is currently the strongest of the rebels, is from the Agnus family.”

“I heard about her. You’re talking about Carmen von Agnus, right?” Lilith asked.

Joshua nodded. “After the death of the Dark God, Babel von Agnus, my older brother, was going to become the next Duke Agnus, but someone else claimed that seat.”

“At the time, Babel von Agnus was seriously injured by a mysterious ambush.”

“He hasn’t shown his face to the world for decades, but I’m sure that he’s alive. There’s a high chance that he’s locked up somewhere in the north.”

“I agree. It would have been too risky for Carmen von Agnus to kill her nephew and become the new Duke Agnus,” Lilith said. Just as expected from the leader of an information guild, her analytical skills were great. “Avalon is heavily patriarchal, so she justified herself by claiming that she was heading the family on behalf of the unwell, legitimate family head.”

“Yes, so my plan is to make whoever arrives in the north and saves Babel first the next emperor.”

“...You want me to help the two princes finish the civil war?”

“Exactly.” Joshua smiled.

“Exchanging help with an Avalon where Joshua Sanders isn’t the emperor… I think I’m suffering too much loss.”

“It’s only for a year.”

“A year?” Lilith repeated.

“Yeah, I can regain my full power afterward.”

Lilith flinched. “Can you really say stuff like that so casually? I might attack you right now.”

“I trust you.”

Lilith raised an eyebrow. “…Your seducing skills are as great as usual. Your wives should be on high alert.”

Despite what Joshua said, he didn’t tell her that his real body was somewhere else. How would Lilith respond if she found that out?

“I have two goals,” Joshua declared. “The first one is to finish the civil war within a year, and the second one is to personally bring peace back to the continent.”

Zero felt his heart begin to race.

‘Wh-What is going on with me? I’m a citizen of the Hubalt Empire, so this should be bad news for me. If he accomplishes his goals, the new strongest country of the continent will be Avalon, not Hubalt…’ he thought. Nevertheless, he couldn’t calm down. He was looking forward to seeing the new continent that Joshua Sanders, the Martial God, was going to create. There weren’t many people he would take such words seriously from, but Joshua was one of them.

However, Zero needed insurance if things were going to escalate like this.

“Your Majesty, Emperor of Avalon,” Zero solemnly began.

Joshua shook his head. “Just call me by my name. Other people might discover our identities if you keep calling me ‘Your Majesty’.”

“…Then I’ll call you Ash.”

Joshua chuckled quietly. That was the name he had used in his first meeting with Zero. Ash pen Frederick was also Joshua’s alias when he had first arrived in Arcadia to get into the Academy.

“That sounds like a good idea,” Joshua said.

“Since you have a new name and identity, isn’t that better for you to form a new relationship?” Zero asked.

“Such as?”

“How about becoming Lilith’s lover?”

Lilith’s eyes popped wide open.

Zero could feel the air turning cold. When he glanced back, he saw Iceline giving him a death glare.

“…If you had a death wish, you could have just said it,” Iceline said.

“…Ooops.”

“We’re in the middle of the forest, so no one will know if I freeze you here. Is that what you want?” Iceline menacingly asked.

Zero was too frightened to reply.