Beyond the Hero’s Death – 38 | Sousaku – 創作

Episode 38: Thus Spoke the Emperor ④ ～The Truth of the Empire～

"D-Damn it…… You're not going to kill me, are you? ! The world's greatest mind, this treasure of humanity that is me! The genius that is me! ? "

"I think I should just stop you from breathing right now. ……But I'm sure Raoul thinks differently."

Roger looked frightened, but when he heard Falty's words, he seemed to see a glimmer of hope that I wouldn't kill him, so he looked at me with pleading eyes. Stop it, I'm not trying to help you.

"……Well, yeah. I knew Roger himself was a hopeless guy, and although the reason and trigger were unexpected, this was to be expected.
……I'm more interested in the person behind him."

Roger's extremely selfish claims were largely within the realm of predictability.
I'm more interested in the emperor of this country, who was pulling the strings behind the scenes. In the first place, if the emperor has a deep relationship with the heroes, then even if we ignore Roger's ridiculous claim, the emperor's goal and Roger's goal are one and the same. When you think about it, maybe... maybe Roger himself doesn't even realize it, or maybe he hasn't been told.

"Roger, I have business with the emperor of this country. Can you pass it on? "

"Y-Yeah! Leave it to me, of course! ! After all, I am the emperor's most trusted confidant, his right-hand man and left-hand man, so to speak! ! S-So don't try to do something cruel to someone as important as me, okay? We're traveling companions, after all."

……I will say no more. Roger said he could contact the emperor directly using the crystal ball in the room, so I grabbed him by the collar and brought him in front of the crystal ball, where he began to speak into it. The crystal ball seems to be some kind of magical communication device.

"Your Majesty! It's me, the genius grand wizard Roger! ! I have urgent business and request permission to be granted an audience with Your Majesty! ! "

"―――All right. All those who are there, bring them all to the castle."

……Those who are there? I see, so the emperor knows we're here. That means that Roger was a spent piece from the moment we arrived here, without even knowing it... What a pitiful man. Maybe you think that if you take us to the emperor, he'll do something about us, but that's not likely to happen, Roger.

Leaving the mansion with Roger, I was honestly impressed by the beauty of the city as we rode in a horse-drawn carriage toward the emperor's castle. The streets at dusk were brightly lit by streetlights powered by magic and other light fixtures resembling light bulbs. This is something that cannot be found in other countries such as the Kingdom or in Irene's city, and it gives the impression that this country's technology is more advanced than other countries. ……Well, it's just a country that builds big cannons.
When we arrived at the emperor's castle, Roger looked at the devil with a frightened expression as the archbishop was "put away". You're being monitored, so don't worry, I won't put you away.
Then, led by soldiers, we were all escorted to the audience chamber, with Roger being dragged along by his collar by me.

As we were ushered into the emperor's audience chamber, there were no guards in sight, and a single man with a powerful physique sat on a throne decorated with swords. He was probably in his mid-30s.
He wore a golden crown and had long golden hair. His beard, which grew from under his nose to his chin, was neatly trimmed and did not appear unclean. Even the way he sat on the throne was unlike that of the pope, who lacked refinement. He sat with his back straight and remained motionless, exuding elegance and dignity in every gesture, radiating the aura of a ruler. There was no doubt about it: this was the emperor.

"No guards? That's pretty careless, isn't it? Or is it confidence, or recklessness?"

"Hmph, soldiers are unsuitable for this place. Celestial Knight Raoul and company, your journey has been a noble one. ―――I am Emperor Bahas VII."

"Your Maeuuuujesy! P-Please help! "

I let go of Roger's collar, who I had been holding onto, and he rolled on the ground, wriggling around and begging the emperor for help. However, seeing Roger like this, the emperor sighed.

"Roger, I told you, didn't I? You must take responsibility for your own actions. If this is the result of your actions, then deal with it yourself."

"That can't～! ! Your Majesty! Your Majesty～! ! "

The emperor did not even look at Roger, who was crying miserably and clinging to him. It's too pitiful, but I don't feel sorry for him.

"―――Now, let's continue our conversation, Celestial Knight. You've come a long way. I'll tell you everything you want to know. What would you like to know first? "

On the other hand, the emperor, rather than appearing relaxed, looked at me with eyes that conveyed confidence and strong will, prompting me to come up with questions.

"……Why did you kill Al?"

"Hmm, so you want to talk about your friend first? Maybe that's the kind of person who gets chosen to be a 『Celestial Knight』."

With a hint of sadness in his voice, the emperor began to speak.

"When a great calamity awakens in the world, the goddess will grant the power to defeat it to those she has chosen... Among them, the holy sword of the hero is particularly noteworthy. The protective power of the Celestial Knights, the arrows of the Divine Bow, and the magic of the Archmage are ultimately no match for the Holy Sword of the Hero, even when combined.
The ultimate power to defeat all enemies that exist in the world―――― An unparalleled instrument of violence.
As long as we don't know when it will be used against humanity, we can't leave something like that in the world. We must do everything in our power to eliminate the hero."

"―――That's because you don't know Al. Even if he had immense power, he was not the type to wield it against others."

However, upon hearing my words, the emperor shook his head with a sad expression for some reason.

"……Isn't that just your personal bias because of the friendship between you and the hero?
There is no such thing as absolute in this world.
It is unclear what causes humans to become distorted and change their ways. You yourself have encountered such things on your journey to defeat the Demon King, haven't you? "

Even if the emperor doesn't say who he's talking about, it's obvious... It's my childhood friend, whom I killed with my own hands. And Roger, who was crawling around like a caterpillar and screaming, may not have been like that at first.

"I know that. Even so―――There's no way that a completely unrelated empire can just come in and take Al's life! "

With a sigh, the emperor spoke quietly, as if recalling distant memories from somewhere far away.

"Not only is it related, but this country is the most related of all, oh Celestial Knight of the present age.
Although the tragedy caused by the hero is kept secret, this empire is a remnant of the aftermath of a war that took place about 1,000 years ago―――A country built by the previous Celestial Knight.
And so, in order for the emperor to never forget what happened, the Archmage of that time used her secret magic to pass down the memory of the tragedy from generation to generation."