Chapter 162: Demonic Heart (2)

“Demonic heart??”

Yuri burst out laughing.

“Demonic heart? What is that, a sacred root gatherer or something?”

Moyongchan frowned.

“Are you crazy or what?”

“Your pronunciation just got worse again.”

“I just remembered I don’t need to worry about how I speak with you, brat.”

“If he gets to the demonic heart, he’ll probably scream ‘I found the heart, no, I stole it!’.”

“I don’t have anything like a demonic heart.”

“Why not?”

“Because I didn’t learn such an unnatural technique.”

“But if one of our ancestors created it, why would it be unnatural?”

“Because it tries to master something that can’t be controlled. From the start it’s impossible. Like trying to catch the wind.”

“And how are you so sure it can’t be controlled?”

“How do you know if it’s manure or soybean paste if you don’t taste it?”

“Soybean paste?”

“They don’t have it in the west… hmm…”

“Is it edible?”

“Obviously.”

Yuri stood up and brushed off the grass stuck to his clothes. Then he remembered what happened just before he got trapped in the demonic heart.

“I was training with Bernard… and I lay down here and fell asleep.”

“Exactly.”

“And this demonic heart thing? I just took a little nap.”

“And while you slept you unleashed your energy like it was nothing?”

“Did I? Maybe I trained in my sleep.”

“Yuri Briol.”

Moyongchan placed a hand on his shoulder. Yuri felt the warmth of that palm.

“You’re not going to listen to me anyway.”

“About not wielding the sword anymore?”

“Yes.”

“Of course I won’t listen.”

“But at least… moderate the use of that power.”

“Thanks to it, I defeated Yalta.”

“And soon it’ll consume you too.”

Yuri shrugged and then nodded.

“Yes. I’ll keep your concern in mind.”

He had no intention of ignoring Moyongchan’s words. He was an expert with vast experience and one of the Ten Greats.

He was the one who best understood the martial art of the Heavenly Demon, the one Erich Briol had used as a reference.

Yuri also felt how strange that nightmare had been.

Too vivid, almost impossible to wake from. And its content was so sweet that all he wanted was to keep dreaming.

Yuri placed his fingers on Guilty’s hilt. If it weren’t for this sword, he might never have awakened.

“That’s it.”

Moyongchan patted his shoulder.

“It won’t be easy. No martial artist has overcome the demonic heart.”

Yuri looked at him. Moyongchan gave a slight smile. But his eyes weren’t smiling.

“Not even the Heavenly Demon.”

With that, he turned around. Yuri watched his silhouette fade into the distance and scratched his head.

“Demonic heart, huh…”

Though he kept his carefree attitude, Yuri understood, deep down, that he shouldn’t take this lightly.

If he had the same dream again the next time he slept… Would he be able to wake up again?

He couldn’t be sure. Yuri tapped Guilty a few times.

“Isn’t it something we all carry inside?”

He didn’t know if it was coincidence or not, but Guilty gave off a clear sound, as if in response to his words.

***

Starting a war wasn’t as easy as just saying it.

A legitimate cause was needed. But if the whole nation was engulfed in madness, and the citizens, intoxicated by dark magic, cried for vengeance daily, then it was much easier.

The Empire was showing troubling movements. Everyone could sense something was about to happen.

The only question was when and where.

The countries bordering the Empire kept sending diplomatic delegations to maintain peace, and Joachim was dedicating all its strength to fortifying the Alloy mountain range.

“The Holy Kingdom seems to have a fairly smooth succession to the throne.”

Fiore said.

Yuri, who was beside him, asked,

“Why do you say that?”

“Because the letter sender changed. Now Larsson is replying.”

“That friend?”

“He’ll probably be king soon. He’s handing off pending matters before taking the throne.”

Fiore folded the letter as he spoke.

“Seems like he’s doing well.”

Yuri nodded.

He didn’t personally have much faith in him, but he seemed to have competent subordinates.

Whether due to charisma or bloodline, that was also a virtue.

“And us? Do we have good ministers?”

“The Foreign Minister is working hard, isn’t he?”

“That’s true.”

“Well, in the future, we might not even need one.”

Once Cedric became king, he probably wouldn’t need wise advisors.

He was someone capable of achieving whatever he set out to do. At that moment, he was interested in history, so maybe he’d soon publish a thesis that would shake the academic world.

Yuri smiled imagining a Briol ruled by Cedric.

“What are you laughing at?”

“At the future ahead of us.”

“The war?”

“No, the peace that will follow.”

“You think it’ll come?”

“It must.”

“Here.”

Yuri took the letter Fiore handed him. He probably hadn’t written it himself, but the handwriting looked like his—somewhat sloppy.

Then he remembered Sybilla.

She had said she would join the Holy Order, but since then she had vanished without a trace.

If Larsson was still bothering her even now that he was almost certainly going to be king, it meant the rift between them was already deep.

Yuri suddenly asked,

“If the Empire moves, will the Holy Knights of the Holy Kingdom move too?”

“It’s hard to say.”

“Have you met any?”

“Yes.”

“What did you think?”

“Useful.”

“Did you fight them?”

“In the past.”

One of the Ten Greats was also in the Holy Kingdom. A holy knight named Holy Knight.

He lived devoted to faith in the temple and didn’t appear unless something truly significant happened.

Even in the past life, he didn’t participate directly in the war. He came out late… and then all traces of him vanished. He was likely eliminated by one of the Empire’s other powerhouses.

“Do you have a good relationship with him?”

“No.”

“Do you think you could convince him to intervene?”

“Who knows.”

“Hmm…”

Yuri hoped he would act soon. Maybe he’d have to travel to the Holy Kingdom to persuade the Holy Knight personally.

That was the most direct and fastest way.

“Don’t rush.”

Maybe because he read his thoughts, Fiore commented.

“If you squeeze too hard, you’ll end up dropping what you already hold in your hand.”

“Yeah.”

Yuri nodded. But even so, he felt there was a certain urgency.

After all, now was the time to strengthen the alliance between the other countries to confront the Empire. Even if they didn’t say it, everyone was uneasy. And in that unease, they all agreed that the Empire must be faced.

If even the Holy Knight got involved, the war could take a completely different course from the past life.

Maybe they could stop the Empire’s expansion from the beginning. They had to cooperate with other countries as much as possible and reduce the Empire’s military strength.

“Hmm…”

Yuri tilted his head suddenly.

“Father.”

“Hmm?”

“I’m curious about something.”

“What is it?”

The Empire was strong.

And one of the main reasons was that nearly half of the Ten Greats were on the Empire’s side or aligned with it.

If they could separate them from the Empire, the situation would become much more manageable.

Now that Yalta was dead, four remained. Just removing one more would change history.

“Do you have any connection to that ogre?”

“No.”

The Ten Greats weren’t made up only of humans. There was Gert, the Death Knight, also Inariel, the elf, and Cruar, the last dragon.

And there was also a member of another race.

An Ogre.

“I can’t say I have a good relationship with Donchich.”

Donchich was an ogre who lived in the northern forests of the Empire.

Although of limited intelligence, he became one of the Ten Greats due to his brutal strength. In terms of raw power, he ranked among the highest in the group.

“From the way you call him, it seems you are close.”

“I only fought him once a long time ago.”

“I see…”

“Why do you ask?”

“Since he’s simple-minded, I was wondering if we could bring him to Briol.”

“That’s not possible.”

“Why not?”

“Donchich…”

What Fiore said next completely surprised Yuri.

“Because he is loyal.”

“Huh?”

He didn’t expect to hear a word like loyalty. Fiore continued.

“Donchich received help from the Empire a long time ago. At that time, the imperial family granted him the northern forest as a token of gratitude and pardoned his crimes.”

“I see…”

“And Donchich never forgot the emperor’s favor.”

“I didn’t know he was such an admirable ogre.”

“He’s just slow to reason. But in terms of loyalty, he may be better than many humans.”

“I understand.”

Yuri nodded. At least he understood that convincing him would be difficult.

“Then let’s just pray we don’t meet Donchich, the loyal ogre, on the battlefield.”

In the past life, Donchich was mobilized, but rarely appeared on the front lines.

He was almost always in the rear. But when he acted, it was like a natural disaster.

He could destroy armies alone, devastate the terrain with sheer brute force. When he got angry, he couldn’t distinguish between allies and enemies, so even the Empire had to use him carefully.

“Understood, for now.”

***

Donchich stepped onto the damp earth.

Feeling the coolness under the thick skin of his feet relaxed him.

“Grrrr…”

He moved to the side and left footprints in the mud. While repeating that pattern, without realizing it, he was already in the heart of the forest.

He inhaled deeply.

The smell of the forest filled his lungs. With a single breath, he could sense everything happening in the forest and where everything was.

Donchich frowned.

Something was approaching. It was not welcome.

He thought about hiding deeper in the forest, but then another scent made him stop.

“Grrrr…”

He had to return.

Donchich began walking back toward the forest entrance. On the way, he yanked out a small apple tree by the roots.

He carried it in his hand as he strode forward with long steps.

And there stood the person he served.

“Long time no see, huh?”

Donchich looked down at him.

He tried to remember the etiquette he had been taught long ago and knelt on one knee.

“Crown prince… greets…”

The ogre’s vocal apparatus could mimic human speech to some extent. Although he didn’t articulate clearly, he made himself understood.

“Well done, Donchich. Loyal servant of the Empire.”

The one who had summoned him was Eugen, the heir to the throne.

Donchich stared at him and spoke again.

“Smells… bad.”

“Bad? But I used the most expensive perfume.”

“What you… brought… dangerous…”

“Oh, you already sense it? Is it because you’re one of the Ten Greats or because ogres are like that?”

“I… ogre… special.”

“Yes, I see.”

Behind Eugen, a group of knights stood waiting. Though they were facing an ogre, they showed no reaction.

“Bring it.”

One of the knights handed over something wrapped in silk.

“Donchich. I have a task for you.”

“I… emperor… loyal… if I can… I will.”

“It’s not difficult.”

Eugen smiled.

“You just have to stay still.”

Then he removed the silk and revealed what was inside.

Donchich stepped back. A single step of his made the ground tremble.

“That… danger… danger…”

“Look at it.”

“Don’t want… to see…”

“Donchich. Loyal ogre. This is an order. Stay still.”

Eugen approached and showed him what he held.

“And look at it carefully.”

Inside was a piece of parchment. From Eugen’s hand emanated a black mist.

“Grrrr…”

Donchich covered his eyes with both hands, but Eugen forced them down.

He could have resisted, but he didn’t. Even though that small human was showing him something dangerous, Donchich did not fight back.

Finally, he saw the parchment up close.

He groaned like a beast.

“Grrrrrr…”

His eyes clouded over and he fell to his knees. Eugen did not withdraw the parchment.

“If we just unleash him first and let him cause chaos, that’s enough. Why bother justifying it? We’ll say a beast went wild.”

Eugen let out a laugh. Even as all of that happened, the knights accompanying him were unfazed.

Their eyes, even the whites, were covered in darkness. And thick black veins bulged in their necks.

The ogre’s low wail shook the entire forest.