༺ The End (2) ༻
In the last Great War, the Immortal Corps Commander was the first Corps Commander to die.
And so, having died relatively early on, he had no knowledge whatsoever of how the war ended.
Before being torn to death by the Malevolent Star’s spear, he had hidden a spare life vessel in his quarters, as a precaution.
He disguised it as an artifact to entice the greed of any intruder who might stumble upon it unknowingly.
As he had planned, an inexperienced adventurer ended up touching that same life vessel years later and revived him, albeit barely. The first thing he did right after that was to seek recent information.
When he found out how the war had ended several years ago, he was dumbstruck. Even more so when he heard that the humans were still around, unharmed. And when he discovered that the war had ended somewhat in humanity’s favor, he was completely appalled.
Dragging his imperfect body, he hurriedly sought news from the Demon King’s forces, only to find out that most of his fellow Corps Commanders had lost their lives at the hands of humans, the Demon King had mysteriously disappeared, and the demons’ remaining forces, essentially the defeated troops at this point, were somehow cobbled together by the Black Dragon Corps Commander.
The Immortal Corps Commander only remembered the heyday, back when the Demon King’s forces had created a sea of blood in more than half of human territories, so the news came as shocking. Of course, the news about the sudden disappearance of the Demon King himself came as the most shocking one for him.
During the battle on Ragnarok Plains, all remaining forces of the Demon King’s Army and the Human Alliance clashed fiercely.
Originally, it was the Demon King who was supposed to lead the troops to ensure the complete annihilation of humanity, but for some reason, he remained in his castle, observing the situation and refused to move until the moment of defeat.
But he could still understand that much.
Because the Demon King was notorious for being unpredictable.
He possessed formidable strength, so formidable that even the most powerful Corps Commander was insignificant compared to him. His personality was cold, and the only reason why he took subordinates into his service was because it was necessary, not because he was interested in them.
And as a mere mortal, the Immortal Corps Commander believed that he shouldn’t even try to understand the reasons behind his behavior in the first place.
That was why when he learned that the Demon King vanished after leaving behind only traces of a battle with someone, the first thing that he thought was the possibility of an error in the news he received.
Said traces were horrific, it even left the once majestic Demon King’s castle in ruins, proof that the Demon King had fought against quite the powerful entity. However, no bodies were found in that place, not the Demon King’s, not the opponent’s.
He surmised that if the Demon King had faced the enemy personally, it was possible that he evaporated his enemy’s body without leaving any traces left.
But, if that was the case, where did the Demon King disappear to?
The question brought forth another possibility. One that would normally be deemed impossible, but looking at this scene…it wasn’t far-fetched to think that the Demon King had probably been defeated.
But that meant an Ascender like him unexpectedly lost his life to an unknown someone.
The Immortal Corps Commander wasn’t the only one who harbored this kind of doubt, the other members of the Demon King’s Army also harbored the same thing. That led them to having various internal chaos, and as they were unable to resolve it, the army was divided into two.
The loyalists, the ones who believed that the Demon King was still alive and would return someday.
And the revolutionaries, the ones who accepted his death and argued that the second most powerful demon, the Black Dragon Corps Commander, should be proclaimed as the new Demon King.
But, both factions were aware that if they were to further press on with their incursion toward humanity, they would definitely be routed out. And so, they decided to conceal the Demon King’s disappearance from the outside world and entered a humiliating truce with humans.
Considering that the current state of the Demon King’s Army was close to being just a group of defeated vagrants, and the fact that they were divided into two factions that fiercely opposed each other, one didn’t need to be a genius to tell how disordered the Demon Continent had become.
Such was the outcome of the last war, and also the reason why the Immortal Corps Commander, even after his revival, chose not to return to the Demon Continent, but to continue to work in secret in the Kingdom of Ionia.
Because there was nothing to gain by returning to such a mess. He believed that it would be more appropriate for him to continue with the preparations for ascension that he had been doing all along.
Moreover, if the Demon King had truly perished, he figured that it would be better for the Demon King’s Army if he became the new Ascender, pushing aside the Black Dragon and becoming the next Demon King.
And now…
The Demon King, who had disappeared, appeared before the Immortal Corps Commander’s eyes.
“Y-You are alive—!”
Moreover, he existed in the form of a thought-entity within Malevolent Star’s mental world, the Demon King’s Army’s greatest enemy.
‘Wait, can this be considered as living?’
Because if this was his default state, that meant his original body had vanished from this world, making him a soul without a body.
‘If that’s the case, what happened to his original power as an Ascender? Does it no longer exist?’
Disrespectful thoughts of rebellion slowly started to emerge in the Immortal Corps Commander’s mind.
After all, the reason why he submitted to the Demon King was because of his power. As a dark elf from the Great Forest, he really had no reason to be loyal to the Demon King aside from that.
“Hmm….”
At that moment, as if the Demon King had read his subordinate’s thoughts…
The aura emanating from him changed.
It was as if the world was engulfed in endless darkness. The whole world trembled, as if it were being shaken by a massive earthquake.
Noticing this, the Immortal Corps Commander bowed his head even deeper.
‘Now that I think about it, I’m in the same situation as him! And his soul’s rank is obviously way greater than mine!’
[This lowly servant greets the ruler of the demon race, the supreme and glorious Demon King!]
Only then did the Demon King’s imposing aura subside.
However, he didn’t show any pleasure nor satisfaction at the Immortal Corps Commander’s greetings. When being greeted by a servant, there was a certain gesture that the lord needed to display in response, but the Demon King remained indifferent, neither nodding nor giving any sign of acknowledgement.
Then again, this was to be expected. Even normal humans wouldn’t harbor any sentiment towards the mundane. No one would feel joy or sorrow at the sight of a bug crawling on the ground. Now, if the bug was baring its fang, they might get a reaction out of it, but that was it. And this was the Demon King’s sentiment toward the Corps Commander.
Still bowing his head, the Immortal Corps Commander cautiously asked.
[Your Majesty, the Demon King, your servants are still desperately searching for you! Why do you remain here alone in this desolate—]
Suddenly, the Demon King gave a sign with his eyes.
At that moment, both of the Immortal Corps Commander’s arms were crushed.
[Ugh—! W-Why—?!]
As thought-entities, the strength of their body was equivalent to the strength of their soul. Considering that he had fattened his soul with the sacrifices of tens of thousands, it was unthinkable that the Immortal Corps Commander’s hands broke as easily as dried stalks.
But, seeing how the opponent was THE Demon King himself, this was an inevitable outcome. That was why the thing that the Immortal Corps Commander focused on was not how exactly his hands got crushed, but why they were crushed in the first place.
The Demon King then answered in an arrogant tone.
“Annoying. Don’t speak without permission, it displeases me.”
‘J-Just for that reason—?!’
‘Had his personality worsened during the time they hadn’t seen each other? Back then even when his servants risked their lives to nag— ahem, to offer him advice, he’d just sit on his throne, pretending to listen to them.’
However, the Immortal Corps Commander was unaware that the sudden change in the Demon King’s attitude was entirely because of him.
Among the Demon King’s Army, only a few who had served the Demon King directly knew that he was particularly lenient towards beings who possessed extraordinary beauty.
Most of the Corps Commanders were high-ranking demons, so them having beautiful appearances was pretty much a given. Even the Dragon Corps Commander, whose true form was a dragon, was rumored to be an exceptionally handsome man in his polymorphed form.
The only exception to this rule was the Beast Corps Commander, who took the form of a beast. But, the Demon King was lenient towards him too. He just valued his unyielding spirit more than his appearance.
As for the Immortal Corps Commander, he too had once possessed a beautiful appearance.
After all, he was a high elf from the Great Forest, THE successor to become a Great Elder. In human’s terms, he was pretty much a Prince. During the war, his slender figure, beautiful green hair and decadent aura unique to a dark sorcerer managed to satisfy the Demon King’s aesthetic tastes.
But now he was merely a skeleton, so it was natural that every time he spoke, the Demon King would feel irritated. Unaware of this fact, the Immortal Corps Commander could only feel that everything felt unfair, but what could he do? Such was the price he had to pay to become a lich.
“Bugs have no right to speak. I am the one who will ask the questions. As for you, answering my question is the only thing you’re allowed to do.”
[…]
“Where’s my answer?”
[Y-Yes, My Lord!]
Only responding when asked?
Of course the Immortal Corps Commander wanted to protest this with all his heart, but he didn’t want his smooth skull to be crushed after his arms.
Though he had plenty of experiences in dying, he had never died in the mental world before, so he was somewhat curious about it, but he had absolutely no intention of sacrificing himself to satisfy that curiosity.
“Tell me in detail. What kind of circumstances led you to this place?”
The Immortal Corps Commander bowed his head deeply to show his submission.
Then, a long sigh filled with a deep exhalation flowed out.
“I thought that stubborn fellow had finally succumbed to his fate and sought me out… What a disappointing outcome. Such insolence, making me wait this long…”
The Demon King leaned his head loosely against a throne made of shadow.
However, his form was hidden in deep darkness. The Immortal Corps Commander couldn’t even see him with his eyes. All he could see was the long, black hair that resembled darkness itself, trailing all the way to the floor.
“Do you understand your situation now? I am feeling really disappointed right now, so if you wish to preserve that worthless soul of yours, you had better hope the story you’re about to tell is able to please me.”
[Y-Yes, I understand…]
The Immortal Corps Commander opened his now non-existent mouth, feeling as if the non-existent roof of his mouth became dry.
Of course, such an act was futile, since he lacked both vocal cords and a tongue. They had been conversing through their mind all this time.
[It was like this…]
Then, he recounted the events that had led him to this point in detail to the Demon King.
Of course, he omitted the part about him trying to become the next Demon King and said that he aimed to take revenge on humanity.
This was not entirely a lie. He had just hid part of the truth while risking his life in the process. However, the Demon King seemed utterly uninterested in that aspect, as he didn’t even show the slightest bit of curiosity.
But, after he heard about the Immortal Corps Commander’s attempt to steal the Malevolent Star’s body using the ascension ritual…
“What a pointless act.”
He showed his disdain with a click of tongue.
