Chapter 372 : King? Me? (2)

Alon for a moment wore a look as if he had misheard something.

"What is the matter, King Palatio?"

However, to his dismay, the affirmation that followed from Carmaxes III made Alon realize that he had not heard incorrectly.

Just what kind of situation was this?

He racked his brain desperately, but he could not understand by what sequence of events he had suddenly come to be addressed as a king.

So he seriously considered whether he should ask the reason first.

“No.”

He soon shook his head.

Everyone was speaking as if it were only natural that Alon was the king.

In the midst of those kings, if he were to respond with, “Huh? Me?” nothing could make the situation more awkward.

Therefore, Alon maintained a calm pretense and continued the meeting.

After some time had passed.

“Then for the time being, let us observe the overall situation.”

“I agree.”

“All right.”

“So be it.”

A tentative conclusion was reached.

Although they had discussed for several hours, in the end, they agreed to proceed conservatively until the peculiar monsters, the special entities, made any significant movements.

After coordinating a few minor matters, the meeting came to an end.

The kings of each nation immediately stood from their seats and hurriedly disappeared one after another.

From the issue of the “Divine Blood” to the falling of the Milky Way and the emergence of strange monsters—there were far too many matters pressing upon the current kings.

Among them, the one who remained until the very end was Siyan.

“We shall meet again. Should I now call you not ‘you,’ but ‘Your Majesty’?”

With an amused expression, Siyan looked at Alon, and before Alon could reply—

“In any case, once your affairs are finished, you should stop by Teria.”

Leaving those final words, she walked out of the chamber.

It was a subtle reaction—unclear whether she was treating Alon as a king or as a noble.

Alon was still bewildered, but soon rose to his feet.

Outside the door, Evan was waiting.

“My lord marquis, did the meeting conclude well?”

His reaction was the same as usual.

Alon stared straight at Evan.

“Evan.”

“Yes?”

“Am I the king of the Palatio Kingdom?”

He posed the question.

For a moment, Evan’s face went blank.

“My lord.”

“Speak.”

“Have you suffered some kind of mental affliction? I am beginning to worry... Shall I summon Rine again?”

With a deeply concerned tone, he poured out what could only be called loyal sincerity.

For some reason, Alon felt anger rising.

***

Evan’s serious concern for Alon lasted only a short while.

Before long, they were naturally able to find the culprit—or rather, the not-quite-culprit—behind this situation.

“Yes! I already mentioned it!”

It was Sili, the Saintess of Kalannon.

“So… Sili, you’re saying you told them in the conference room that we created a nation?”

“Yes! I thought there would never be a better moment than now! But don’t worry. Since all of this was due to your achievements, Marqu—no, Your Majesty, no one objected!”

“No…”

Alon was at a loss for words.

More precisely, he had no idea where to even begin objecting.

“Sili…”

“Yes! Please speak!”

With sparkling eyes that were somewhat burdensome, Sili waited eagerly.

Alon slowly opened his mouth.

“...Did the other kings remain silent?”

This was the first thing he wanted to know.

No matter how he thought about it, the birth of another king would not be a welcome matter for the kings of the allied kingdoms.

The founding of a new kingdom.

Even if the kingdoms were united in alliance, it was the same as gaining a new rival.

There were many other concerns as well.

Especially regarding territory and citizens.

A nation was not something that could be created at will just because one possessed a portion of land.

Well, it could be created in name, but in order to proclaim “this is a new country, and this person is the king,” far more than just material resources was required.

Founding a nation was not a child’s game.

When he summarized all of these concerns into a question, Sili answered with a bright smile.

“I made them stay quiet.”

She answered simply.

“...Hmm? Made them stay quiet?”

“Yes. As you know, the current situation is not particularly favorable, is it?”

“What situation are you talking about?”

To Alon’s question, Sili nodded with a smile.

“One of the major powers of the Allied Kingdoms, Ashtalon, has effectively collapsed after losing its capital, and ever since the Milky Way fell, special entities have begun to roam about.”

“Things are unstable, yes, but that alone is not enough to…”

“Of course, that alone would not be enough. But beyond the border lies the Empire, does it not?”

“Ah.”

Alon let out a soft exclamation without even realizing it.

Certainly, the fall of Ashtalon and the appearance of special entities were matters of concern for the Allied Kingdoms, but ultimately, they were only that—concerns.

In fact, the ungoverned lands left behind by Ashtalon’s destruction were an attractive opportunity for them.

However, if the Empire were to intervene in that region, the situation would completely change.

The only reason the Allied Kingdoms had managed to avoid an imperial invasion until now was precisely because of their alliance.

But if one of the major pillars of that alliance had collapsed?

From the Empire’s perspective, it meant the Allied Kingdoms were now vulnerable targets.

Even if the Empire had no interest, the Allied Kingdoms had no choice but to remain vigilant.

As Alon nodded in understanding, Penia—who had quietly been following the flow of the conversation beside him—posed a question.

“But wouldn’t it still be hard to convince the kings with just that?”

Her question was perfectly reasonable.

Indeed, the Empire was the most sensitive topic to the kings of the Allied Kingdoms, so it was likely they would listen carefully.

But mere uncertainty alone lacked persuasive force.

However, despite Penia’s pointed observation, Sili did not lose her smile.

“Of course that alone wouldn’t be enough. So I added a little seasoning.”

“......Seasoning?”

At Penia’s bewildered response, Sili nodded brightly.

“For example, I might have hinted that if the Empire were to invade, no one could be sure whose side we would be on.”

She said it as casually as if she were talking about the weather.

Penia and Evan involuntarily gasped and flinched.

But Sili remained perfectly serene.

“Of course, I didn’t say it outright. I simply spent a very, very long time explaining it through layered metaphors.”

In other words—

She spent a very, very long time threatening them.

“We simply reminded them that we are but a humble religious order fulfilling our duties.”

If they refused to approve the founding of a kingdom—

She had essentially threatened to clap and cheer in welcome should the Empire invade.

“Ahem, in any case, that’s how we peacefully conducted the meeting and secured this glorious outcome!”

Even as she uttered words that sounded like open intimidation, her face was shining with an innocent smile and both her hands were raised in a cheerful fighting pose.

Alon glanced at the still-shocked Penia and Evan.

“...Right, well... good work.”

“Yes! Because His Majesty wished it!”

“......?”

“In any case, all that remains is for Your Majesty to make the official proclamation whenever you decide! When that happens, the Duchy of Luxibl will also change its national title!”

“......The Duchy of Luxibl is already on board?”

“Yes!”

Before he could even process the thought of ‘King? Me?’ Sili threw yet another bombshell.

Alon’s jaw dropped helplessly, but only for a moment.

“Well… it’s a good thing, isn’t it?”

Evan’s follow-up finally brought him back to his senses.

“...A good thing, huh.”

A king of a nation.

As Evan said, being a king wasn’t inherently bad.

In a fantasy world like this, becoming king meant never having to bow to anyone again.

But that was only in terms of status.

Alon did not find the position of king particularly appealing.

More precisely—

It was because he knew exactly what the duties of a king entailed.

A king of a nation.

While it might look glamorous on the surface, in truth, it was an incredibly taxing job once you peeled back the layers.

From the moment one ascends the throne, moving freely outside becomes nearly impossible, and from morning till night, one must process endless workloads coming from every direction.

In other words, for Alon, whose current life as a marquis was not particularly inconvenient, becoming king felt like adding nothing but burdens.

As Alon made a silent, expressionless gesture of contemplation, Evan let out a dry chuckle.

“You are probably the only person who would react like this when told you could become king.”

“Of course! His Majesty will be someone even greater!”

Sili added enthusiastically, failing to grasp the nuance of the conversation.

Before Alon could ask what does that even mean, Penia spoke up first.

“Well, I do understand His Lordship’s point. Being king may look nice on the surface, but in reality, it’s an exhausting position.”

“Hmm—”

Behind his dry expression, Alon nodded in satisfaction—

“If you become king, you can centralize basic administrative duties, extract the budget to your liking, and use it for magical research, right?”

“...That suddenly sounds appealing.”

Before Alon could even react, Penia had already been swayed by Sili’s argument.

“If His Lordship becomes king, you won’t even need to govern personally. You could focus entirely on magical research, with unlimited resources at your disposal.”

“Since it has come to this, why not try it?”

“Penia… isn't your shift in stance a little too fast?”

Perhaps she noticed the absurd look on Alon’s face, as Penia subtly averted her eyes.

“Even so, the marquis is definitely unique. It’s hard for anyone else to feel this little excitement at such news.”

Sili had successfully recruited Penia.

Penia had already crossed the line.

And Evan, utterly carefree, looked on with satisfaction.

Alon let out a long sigh.

***

A few days later—

“See you later, Master!”

“My Lord, I’ll be waiting!”

“Marquis, I shall take my leave.”

“All right.”

Due to the matter of the special entities, Seolrang, Yutia, and Yuman departed.

“Brother, I should go as well. There seems to be confusion in information, so…”

“Chief! We’re heading into the jungle for a bit too. There are things we need to discuss. Ah, we’ll take Historia with us!”

“I want to stay here though—”

“I understand.”

Nangwon, Ryanga, and Historia also departed.

After seeing them off, Alon temporarily set aside the question of whether to proclaim the kingdom or not.

He then headed for Raksas along with Radan, Penia, and Evan.

Their destination was to meet the former Observer in Raksas.

More specifically, to speak with the being who, according to the former Observer, knew the truth of this world.

“Hoo—”

Alon thought of the three artifacts he held in his possession.

The Mask of the One Who Walks Forward, brought by Ryanga.

The Crying Blessing, brought by Seolrang.

And finally, the Jewel of the Closed-Eyed One, obtained from Eliban.

Therefore—

‘Just how much will I be able to uncover?’

He felt a sense of anticipation.

In the past, the secrets of this world had been more of an auxiliary matter than the main objective.

Back then, Alon’s goal had been simply to stop the Sins.

But now that circumstances had changed, the secrets of this world had become immensely important.

And so, a seed of expectation began to grow in Alon’s heart.

After several weeks of travel, Alon arrived at the coast.

There—

“Observer.”

As if he had known Alon would come—

“I have been waiting.”

The Observer was already sitting on the edge of the cliff, waiting for him.