Chapter 75 - Underwater (5)

“I.... I was merely used by the Demon named Teana.”

Medelrud’s face was crumpled. He was on his knees as he raised both his arms into the air. This was the first words spoken by him. Artpe nodded his head to indicate that Medelrud should keep talking.

“So?”

“In the beginning, her deal appealed to me. I wanted to become king. However, it was a trap. For the price of earning the Demon’s help, I had to carry out tasks for her, and each of them were horrifying. I regretted my decision right away. However, I couldn’t turn back....”

Artpe watched Medelrud’s miserable expression. He continued to speak in a remorseful manner. It seemed Medelrud was a pretty good actor. Artpe had such thoughts as he encouraged Medelrud to talk more.

“I was in such a situation when you guys showed up to ruin everything. The test, which we were conducting under the Demon’s instructions, failed. On top of that, I sent an army consisting of men absolutely loyal to me to bury you guys, yet they were wiped out.”

“At the time, I was truly dumbfounded by your actions. You really didn’t think about the aftermath. You are truly an idiot.”

“I didn’t think anyone was capable of stopping me. After the dirty experiments conducted by the Demon ended, I thought Diaz would fall into my hands. However, all my plans went up in smokes. No, I guess in a way it was an inevitability. Heroes always interfere with any work related to the Demon King’s army. Isn’t that right, hero!”

The Archdue Medelrud had been speaking calmly up until now. However, he shouted those words as he grinded his teeth. It seemed a sudden and unexpected feeling of resentment had surged forth at his own predicament. This was why Artpe mocked Medelrud to his heart’s content.

“If you knew a hero would show up, you are the retarded one for going through with the plan.”

“I thought the heroes were already dead.... You foolish brats ran away by spurning the protection of our kingdom. If you hadn’t run away, things wouldn’t have turned out like this!”

“Well, we became this strong thanks to not entering the palace..”

“······you guys are merely 12 year old brats that ran away after rejecting the protection of our kingdom..... You guys did that to become stronger? You were able to have such thoughts at that age?”

Medelrud’s expression turned blank at the unexpected answer. Artpe shrugged his shoulders.

“You should continue with your story. So what? When you were barely able to escape Diaz, was the Demon with you?”

“Kooh! I was somehow able to preserve my remaining forces.... I planned on gaining a foothold in another country. However, at that moment, the witch enticed once again.”

“Enticed?”

Artpe stopped speaking. He had a good idea what had transpired, so he no longer had to hear what Medelrud had to say. There was no way Medelrud could have been ignorant of what had gone on around him. Artpe just had to look at the state of Anaid to confirm this fact.

“Did you perhap think about conquering the mermaid kingdom of Anaid to use the merfolk as your soldiers? Let me take it a step further. Did you plan on using them to re-conquer Diaz? I bet you wanted to retake the royal palace.”

“······.”

It seemed Artpe had hit the nail on the head, so Medelrud remained silent. Artpe was baffled by this.

What the hell did he say before? He was only used by Teana? There was no way that was true. He had known what he was getting into from the start. The Demon and Medelrud had known each other’s intentions from the start, and they had been in a mutually beneficial relationship!

“So tell me again. Who’s taking advantage of whom?”

“She lied to me! I never knew the curse would work like that!”

No, Artpe really didn’t need to hear more of what Medelrud had to say. Artpe was so disgusted that he waved his hand. Mana String emanated from the tip of his fingers, and it cleanly severed the head of the former Archduke Medelrud. The bastard kept spouting disgusting excuses, and now he would be silent for eternity.

Medelrud had once been at the top of a nation, yet his end was ignominious. However, if one considered the weight of what he had done here, he had met a peaceful end.

“H...his lordship!”

“How dare you do that to our lord······.”

“If he is so precious to you, you should go serve him in hell.”

“Koo-hahk!?”

If he faced them any longer, he thought he would lose all the faith in humanity he had gained from conversing with the lord of Frate. This was why Artpe severed their heads in one fell swoop.

By the sound of it, it would probably would have been better if he hadn’t heard what they had to say. These men had cooperated with the Demon King’s army. They weren’t worthy of being heard!

[He was able to easily kill those powerful men!]

[Amazing. We couldn’t even put up a fight against them, yet he killed all of them with a single wave of his hand.....]

The merfolk shrank back when Artpe’s abilities were verified with their eyes. However, Artpe hadn’t been explicitly trying to show off his power. He snorted as he retracted his hand, and he burned the corpses.

The kingdom of the merfolk was similar to the road. There were places that were filled with air, and there were places that were filled with water. Moreover, the Road of Mermaids was connected to the entrance of the kingdom, so of course, this space was isolated from the ocean. This was why it was possible to use fire magic here.

“All right. This eliminates the possibility of them coming back as Undeads to haunt us later on.”

“So that is what you were worried about, Artpe......”

Just the mention of the the Archduke Medelrud gave Artpe the hives.

Artpe had done his best to leave no loose ends behind! He didn’t turn back around until he meticulous searched for the remnants of Medelrud’s forces. He made sure there wasn’t any traces of them left behind. Now it was time for him to take care of the business in regards to the Demon....

[Master.]

He was about to continue his work when he was interrupted. Of course, it was Sherryl. She was like a dog waiting for an order from her master. He couldn’t ignore her, so Artpe gave her instrutions first.

[All the evil energy within the kingdom was eliminated, so you guys take care of the rest. Our Quest is completely over now. There is no reason why it’ll affect you guys any more.]

[I...I understand, master.]

Sherryl had been very nervous. She had thought they would have to face off against the combined might of the Demon and the humans. However, everything ended quickly thanks to Artpe and Sienna. She was a little bit dazed, but she was able to quickly assess the situation. She quickly gave orders to the merfolk.

[Go to the test site, 1st battalion! The Curse is gone, but I’m sure there are still a lot of merfolk imprisoned there! The 2nd battalion shall act as the emergency security force. I want you to make sure the civilians within the kingdom are safe! .....I also want the 3rd and 4th battalion to join them.! Go before it is too late!]

[Understood, princess!]

[We will follow your orders!]

Mmm. As expected, her dominion over the merfolk was too absolute when one considered the fact that she was the 37th princess. Artpe slowly started question what happened to the other 36 princes and princesses. The king of the merfolk had ruled this land before the invasion of the humans. Artpe wondered what had happened to him.

[They are all dead.]

After she instructed her underlings, she had returned to Artpe. Sherryl’s answer to his question was truly shocking.

[What did you just say?]

[They were fed to the Kraken. The royal family possessed the most Mana and high rank potential..... Medelrud and his group wanted to cast the Demonification curse on the Kraken, who was already suffering under the curse of madness. They were all fed to the Kraken.]

Even if he didn’t hear about it, it was obvious as to what had happened afterwards. Still, he felt the need to ask the question. He asked with a bitter expression on his face.

[So you are the last scion? You possessed the most potential, so you were the medium they were going to tie the curse together in the Kraken?]

[······I guess that is one way to look at it. The humans wanted complete dominion over the kingdom, so they weren’t going to leave behind any variables like the royal family. Even if we weren’t sacrificed in the experiment, they would have used some other method to get rid of the royal family······.]

Since the 37th princess Sherryl would tie the curse together within the Kraken, she was spared for couple more days, and she was safely rescued by Artpe before she died. When the merfolk were freed from the curse, they were relieved that a member of the royal family had survived, and they were following her....

Even if there was a preposterous human standing behind her, they had no choice but to follow her.

‘I should have known it would turn out like this.’

Since she was the 37th princess, he had thought there was no way she would have a path to the throne. Artpe was foolish for having such thoughts. Who cares if she was low on the totem pole in succeeding the throne? If everyone was dead, her turn would come! Somehow, Artpe knew what she was going to say next.

[That is why······ Master.]

As if to drive home his worry, Sherryl’s eyebrows shook, and she lowered her head.

[When we recovered the kingdom, I became the representative of our kingdom. The kingdom will belong to master. This is something I should tell you after I ascend to the throne. However, I thought it would be better if you knew this beforehand.....]

Artpe was a human that had saved her life. At the same time, he had easily returned the kingdom to her care. It was something the merfolk had considered to be an impossible task. Of course, this was the natural progression of the events.

If he thought about it, it was truly ironic. Medelrud had been chased out of Diaz, and he pulled off all kinds of shenanigans with the Demon to gain possession of the mermaid kingdom. Artpe gained what they had wanted by defeating them!

[You just regained your kingdom, yet you are giving it all to me. Are you sure you are fine with this?]

Artpe let out a sigh as he asked the question. However, Sherryl answered back with an unwavering voice.

[We are determined to see this through. Master, you killed the evil men, who tried to dominate our kingdom through force and fear. You also released us from the curse. The merfolk must repay our debt. Even if you weren’t my master, you would have become the ruler of our kingdom in the end.]

Her words were flowing out naturally like water, but it wasn’t as if Sherryl looked completely thrilled about it. How could she enjoy handing over her kingdom to a human? Still, it was much better than being ruled by Medelrud. This fact gave her comfort.

Artpe was flabbergasted, so he asked her a question.

[Who the hell taught you to repay a debt no matter what?]

[It is an instinct for the merfolk. We had to find a way to survive in this harsh ocean, and it is an ancestral wisdom that was ingrained within our body.]

[Let us say you trust this wisdom, and you follow me until the end. What if I suddenly lose my mind someday? What if I ruin the kingdom like Medelrud?]

At that moment, the light in Sherryl’s eyes shook. However, she immediately fixed her expression before answering him.

[Master won’t do such a thing.]

[You became a little bit worried by my words.]

[······that is true.]

[How the hell is that wisdom? You are just being idiotically stubborn!]

[But······.]

When Sherryl looked at him with a worried expression, Artpe let out a laugh once again. Before Medelrud invaded the kingdom, the merfolk had never had any meaningful interactions with the humans. This was why Sherryl was still unable to judge the humans. This was why this single phrase from Artpe worried her.

He thought her innocence was very cute. He didn’t show any outward signs of what he was thinking, yet Maetel was like a wraith as she moved in to pinch his cheek. He was terrified of Maetel, so he quickly erased such thoughts. He gave Sherryl instructions.

[Do you remember the reason why I entered the Road of Mermaids?]

[I do. Master wanted to use it to go to Aedia.]

[That’s right. From the beginning, I only wanted one thing from you. I don’t need you, and I don’t want your kingdom. I’m fine with you just guiding me to Aedia. You don’t even have to follow me. It is sufficient to send a subordinate in your stead to guide us.]

[What······?]

The light within Sherryl’s eyes shook. He wondered if she wanted him to explain it again, because she hadn’t understood what he meant by his words. It seemed that wasn’t the case.

[Master.... Are you rejecting me?]

After a brief silence, Sherryl spoke. For some reason, her cheeks were puffed out. Artpe didn’t know the reason behind her reaction, so he was baffled by it. He replied to her.

[No. It isn’t as if I don’t like you. However, I don’t want to unnecessarily make trouble for you when you have to rule over Anaid from now on.]

[I’ve already solemnly promised everything that I am to you, master. So why are you trying to put a stain on my promise?]

[I’m not going to coerce you into doing anything you don’t want to do. That is what I’m trying to say right now!]

[You don’t have to take my feeling into account. I want to repay my debt as an honorable mermaid. I want to repay the favor to a worthy master!]

Mmmm. This was giving him a headache. He took back his previous thought that said merfolk possessed intelligence on par with the humans. These guys were idiots!

[Nyaa.]

historical

“Huh?”

‘It isn’t as if I don’t like you, and I’m not saying you are annoying either. I’m not trying to insult you now. I just want to suggest the best path forward for you and your kingdom. I still have a whole life in front of me, and I can’t be tied down by this kingdom.’

He was about to say this to Sherryl. However, Roa, who had been sleeping soundly after her feast, opened her eyes wide.

“You were sleeping well up until now, so what’s up?”

[Nyaa, nyaa-nyaa-ah. Nyaa-ha-nyaa!]

After she squeezed out of Artpe’s arms, Roa’s butt started to wiggle by itself. This was obvious, but she only displayed such reaction when she detected a curse or an evil energy. She had already eaten all the evil energy within the kingdom, yet she was showing such a reaction. This was why it was impossible for him to comprehend what was going on.

[Nyaa nyaa nyaa nyaa nyaa? Nyaa nyaa-ah, nyaa-oooooh-nyaa.!]

Roa was willing and kind enough to explain it to her owner. Her butt and tail was wiggled back and forth as she did so. It was as if she was couldn’t wait to dash out.

“An energy that hadn’t been here before has suddenly shown up? You think it is as delicious as the curse within the Kraken?”

[Nyaaa!]

[Koo-goo-ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh!]

[R...run away······!]

[Ggoo-ahhhhhhhk!]

When Roa gave a fierce nod in confirmation, a horrifying roar rang out at the same time as the scream of the merfolk. Sherryl’s face turned pale when she heard the sound. She yelled out in alarm.

[M...my god..... Our brief absence caused the ancient temple to show up!]

Artpe had a rough idea what her answer would be, but he couldn’t help himself from asking the question.

[What is the ancient temple?]

[It is where the horrific beasts of the ocean was sealed. The Anaid kingdom exists to protect the seal! We diligently rotated guards to protect the seal. However, we weren’t able to protect it for over a week, because we were invaded by the humans. In the end, the seal is....!]

[Yes. I see.]

He let out a benevolent smile at Sherryl’s reply, and he nodded his head. However, he was cussing up a storm inside.

Of course, his Quest wouldn’t end so easily! He should have anticipated this when he was able to easily take care of the Demon and the humans!

The hero’s tough destiny had brought out something they shouldn’t have encountered! Their destiny had called out even the ancient monsters!