“Great work, Sir Buildemain.”

“Not at all. I only spoke a few words.” Buildemain shook his head humbly at Eugene’s compliment. He felt ashamed to be lauded for doing a small favor for someone who had come to help his nation.

“So, the governor of Moyna and the nobles showed considerable sincerity?” Eugene asked.

“Yes. When I told them that Your Majesty has already secured all the basic supplies, they gave me other types of goods,” Buildemain responded before turning his head toward a cart filled with boxes.

“Open just one of them,” Eugene instructed.

A few beowulf warriors excitedly opened one of the boxes.

Ohhhh…!

Everyone exclaimed with wide eyes when they saw the box filled to the brim with silver.

“There are gold coins, gold bars, silver bars, and refined mana stones,” Buildemain said. The boxes lining the cart were filled with various forms of ‘sincerity’ sent by the leaders of Moyna.

“They are honorable people who care deeply about their country. As expected, they truly are purebloods,” Eugene commented while nodding with satisfaction.

It felt good to grow stronger, and it felt good to take revenge. Of course, it also felt good to gain more wealth.

“…” Buildemain barely stopped himself from retorting. It was true that he had been greatly disappointed by the leaders of Moyna, but they were also nobles of the Viseche Dukedom. He couldn’t voice his disagreement when the King of Maren was trying to save them face.

“Anyway, the nobles of Moyna won’t be sending anyone here, right?” Eugene asked.

“Yes. They think that Your Majesty and the expedition are already quite a distance away from Moyna,” Buildemain answered.

It certainly made sense.

Eugene had left the gates of Moyna along with the expedition before sending Buildemain to the governor, and that was already half a day ago. It would have been normal for the expedition to have traveled dozens of kilometers in the meantime. But in truth, Eugene and the expedition had stopped after traversing for about an hour after departing from Moyna, then waited for Buildemain. Eugene had successfully avoided the annoying invitations of the Moyna nobles while also receiving the full extent of their ‘sincerity’. He had perfectly killed two birds with one stone.

“Then let’s get going,” Eugene said.

“Yes. We can stop by the villages on our way to procure food. Since the rate of consumption is so high, it would be best to resupply once every three days,” Buildemain answered.

“It’s because they eat so much,” Eugene said while observing the beowulfs busy ripping through jerkies. When the beowulfs noticed Eugene’s gaze, they grinned while waving.

“Hehe. At least they’re worth what they eat.”

Although it was expensive to feed the beowulfs, they were definitely worth more than the expense. Otherwise, there would have been no reason to let the beowulf warriors join in on this expedition.

“Let’s go!” Galfredik shouted, and the expedition started to move once again. Baron Palo, the representative of the Viseche Dukedom’s delegation, came to Eugene’s side with Buildemain.

“Your Majesty. I have something to discuss with you. Is that all right with you?” he asked.

“Go ahead,” Eugene answered.

With Eugene’s permission, Palo gestured at Buildemain.

Buildemain stepped forward and spoke, “Perhaps it’s just a feeling, but some of Moyna’s nobles were acting a little strange.”

“Acting a little strange?” Eugene asked.

“Yes. As Your Majesty expected, some nobles used disparaging words to describe Your Majesty before I brought up the story about the Holy Empire’s High Priest. But the one who started everything was someone unexpected,” Buildemain continued.

“Hmm. Who was it?” Eugene asked.

When Eugene showed interest, Baron Palo stepped up and responded, “Baron Lusa, the lord of a territory north of Moyna. He is the only one with an evil land inside his territory.”

“Hooh…”

“As you should know, Baron Lusa has a strong voice and influence in the City of Moyna, as he’s the only one with an evil land. The mana stones and by-products coming from the Lusa territory’s dungeon are responsible for much of the city’s economy. The problem is that Lord Lusa has nothing to gain if the number of roamers keeps increasing and the resolution of the situation is delayed,” Palo continued.

“Since that will only make it difficult to properly subjugate the dungeon. His territory will have to make a loss in the meantime, and he would also lose influence in the City of Moyna. But the Lord of Lusa was actually the first to disparage me?” Eugene asked.

“Yes. That’s what I find so weird.”

It was certainly strange. Any nobles with their own evil land would welcome Eugene and the expedition with open arms, as the resolution of the monster uprising was directly linked to their own interests and profits.

And yet, Lord Lusa had attacked Eugene with his words?

‘Hmm. Perhaps?’

An idea suddenly crossed Eugene’s mind.

Eugene asked, “By chance, this Lord Lusa, is he close to the Roman Empire, or rather, the imperial family?”

“What? Ah, yes. Certainly, his family has had quite a few exchanges with the imperial family starting from the previous generation. But how did Your Majesty possibly—”

Baron Palo was one of the closest aides to Duke Viseche. As such, he was competent at gathering intelligence and was also bright when it came to the state of affairs.

“Well, I have my guesses. Anyway, if he’s a noble with a relationship with the imperial family, then His Excellency Viseche shouldn’t like him very much, is that right?” Eugene asked.

“That’s right. He has always kept a close eye on Baron Lusa,” Baron Palo answered.

The Dukedom of Viseche was a coalition of cities and territories, and the nobles of Viseche had many close relationships with foreign nobles. However, having a close relationship with the imperial family of the Roman Empire was a slightly different matter. It was a widespread fact that the Roman Empire had always been trying to suppress its neighbors and project its influence.

Baron Lusa showing off his friendship with the imperial family of the Roman Empire was inevitably an eyesore for the Duke of Viesche.

When Eugene lowered his voice, the baron also followed suit while crouching slightly.

“Sir Palo. What if…”

“Yes?”

Eugene continued, “Would the Duke of Viseche be pleased if I dealt with Sir Lusa?”

“…?!” Baron Palo flinched before quickly nodding.

He then responded, “Of course. However, the issue of the monster uprising is a greater predicament for our nation right now. I’m worried if Your Majesty could afford the time. Moreover, I’m also worried that if you personally took care of Sir Lusa, the other nobles might consider Your Majesty’s actions to be meddling in internal affairs…”

It was definitely understandable for Baron Palo to be worried, as he had signed an agreement with Eugene on the dukedom’s behalf and brought them back to his country.

A foreign noble—a supreme leader of a country taking care of one of their lords in their own territory was a matter that would affect their national pride. Baron Palo and Duke Viseche would naturally be held responsible, as they brought Eugene here.

“I understand what you are worried about. But what if I could take care of the justification as well?” Eugene asked.

“…Then I have no worries,” Baron Palo hesitantly answered. Eugene’s assurance wasn’t enough to absolve him from all of his worries. It appeared he wanted to prioritize the monster uprising.

“Anyway, I understand. First, let’s focus on taking care of the monster problem. I will keep the promise I made on my honor, so don’t worry,” Eugene said.

“I trust Your Majesty,” Baron Palo answered. He returned with Buildemain to the group of foreign nobles.

Edmund and Galfredik slowly guided their horses to Eugene’s side.

“Master, is there another problem?” Galfredik asked.

Eugene answered, “It looks like the yellow bastard has left his shit in this place as well. Well, it’s only a hunch so far.”

“Crown Prince Voltaire?” Edmund asked.

“Yes. There is a man, Baron Lusa, in Moyna…” Eugene relayed the story he had heard from Baron Palo.

He then instructed Edmund, “First of all, sir, take some elven knights and go to the Lusa territory. Find out the status of the roamer monsters and whether the dungeon subjugation is proceeding smoothly or not.”

“Understood. I will return in three days,” Edmund answered.

“Good. I will see you at the Bemos territory,” Eugene said.

“Yes, my lord.”

Edmund departed with two elven knights. The expedition continued to head toward the Bemos territory, the place where the monster uprising was taking place.

***

Two days later, the expedition arrived in the vicinity of the Bemos territory. While the servants and slaves set up camp, Eugene gathered the nobles. Unlike when they had first departed from Moyna, the expressions of the nobles were completely stiff.

“The number of roamer monsters has definitely increased by a significant amount. We have already killed more than two hundred monsters today…”

“With the current state of things, it would be difficult to even go from territory to territory without hiring dozens of mercenaries.”

The nobles could not rest easy after personally confirming the reality of the situation. Their worries grew when they imagined that similar things were happening in their own countries.

“And there might be a limit to just recklessly killing the monsters we encounter without a proper plan.”

“But it’s not like we can wander around aimlessly until we come across their base. This is a problem.”

It was one of the biggest weaknesses of having a small group of elite soldiers. The roamers were far too spread out that the individual strength of the warriors didn’t matter so much. And taking care of the monsters one by one would take too much time, which would cause an even greater prevalence of monsters in other regions and countries.

The nobles of other countries who had signed agreements with Eugene could not help but feel like they were in a predicament. They felt hurried. As the gazes of the foreign nobles slowly gathered toward Eugene, Prince Localope stepped forward. He had unofficially become the pivotal figure uniting the foreign nobles.

“Ehem. Your Majesty, how about you share with us a detailed plan on how to take care of the monsters? The many sirs gathered here are quite worried. Ah, of course, it’s not like we doubt Your Majesty’s honor. Isn’t that right, sirs?”

“Of course…”

“We have no doubts about Your Majesty’s honor and bravery. However, time is of the essence in this matter, right?”

The nobles’ worries weren’t unwarranted since they had paid a lot of money to ‘hire’ Eugene.

Eugene responded while looking around, “I’ll explain.”

The expressions of the nobles somewhat brightened at Eugene’s answer. They wondered what kind of plan the King of Maren had in mind. After all, he had already proven himself by employing an unorthodox tactical strategy when he rescued the high priest of the Holy Empire.

“We are going to hit the center,” Eugene said.

“The… center?”

“There is something I didn’t say until now because I was worried it would cause confusion,” Eugene said before turning his head.

Princess Lilisain stepped forward. Even if he told the complete, unadulterated truth, no one would fully believe in him as long as he was a vampire. However, Princess Lilisain was a member of the elven royalty, and she did not tell lies. As such, they would obviously be more confident in her words.

“I swear in my own name and the name of Eland’s royal family. I swear that the testimony I am about to give is only the truth,” Princess Lilisain said. Although she was a little unique, Princess Lilisain’s noble honor was comparable to her beauty. The nobles were rather surprised by her determined attitude, but they nodded in response to her words.

“The place where the monster uprising originated in the Dukedom of Maren was a place called the Tywin territory. At the dungeon there…” Princess Lilisain testified dryly to the things she had seen and experienced at the dungeon of the Tywin territory. As she continued, the faces of the nobles turned pale.

After a while, the nobles stood as still as stone statues, and Princess Lilisain drove in the final wedge.

“It was an evil mystery that was completely different from the Fear unique to powerful monsters. Neither I nor the knights of Eland could handle it. Only His Majesty the King was able to reach the heart of the dungeon while facing the strong malice.”

“The heart of the dungeon…!”

No knight had ever reached the heart of an evil land. Rumor had it that several holy knights of the Holy Empire had accomplished the feat, but the truth couldn’t be confirmed with the Holy Empire’s refusal to comment. As such, the nobles couldn’t help but feel shocked.

“The heart of an evil land. In that place was…” Eugene’s calm voice quickly drew the attention of the nobles.

The nobles felt exhilarated and agitated at the same time, thinking that they would be the first ones to finally learn the evil lands’ biggest secret.

Eugene continued, “There was a translucent wall. At the appointed times, monsters would come out.”

“…!”

“And beyond it was a world of monsters, demonic creatures, and demons. I decided to call that place the Demon World. I couldn’t think of anything else to describe a place as evil and cursed as that.”

“D-Demon World…!” The nobles shuddered with great shock.

Everyone was stunned speechless. After a short moment, Prince Localope, who had already heard the story from Eugene, stepped up once again on behalf of everyone.

“Then… Are you saying that the heart of all evil lands in the world is connected to the Demon World?” he asked.

Eugene replied, “I believe so. However, the monster uprising is due to issues within the hearts of specific evil lands.”

“S-specific evil lands? What does that mean?” Baron Palo asked with an anxious heart.

Eugene turned toward Baron Palo before answering, “The evil lands located close to water sources are responsible for entire regions. I believe that should be the case with the Bemos territory as well. Am I correct?”

Baron Palo became wide-eyed, then answered helplessly, “That’s… right.”

“If a problem occurs with an evil land located near a water source, then the water source will become contaminated. When that happens, the problem will not remain localized. Since all of you are responsible for the larger issues of your countries, you should know what I’m talking about,” Eugene continued.

“…!!!” The nobles started trembling even harder.

“At the end of the day, we must take care of the evil land located near the water source in Bemos. We can leave the rest of the monsters to the knights and mercenaries. They would take care of it step by step,” Eugene said.

The nobles became slightly relieved by Eugene’s words. And as if something had come to their mind, one of the nobles suddenly spoke, “Ah! Then the reason why Your Majesty said that only you could take care of the problem was…”

Eugene nodded with a smirk, “That’s right. The only ones capable of entering the heart of evil lands, which are filled with evil energy even elves can’t handle, are me, and…”

Eugene turned his gaze toward Galfredik, Rohime, and Christian before continuing, “Daywalkers, the highest nobles of the Dark Clan.”

“Kieeeh. I can basically hear it. I can hear the sound of the vampires’ market value shooting through the roof,” the spirit whispered while giggling in a voice only Eugene could hear. Surprisingly, she immediately understood Eugene’s inner thoughts.

Veela: We’re going to the moon!