The Ruler of Conspiracy

by Kugane Maruyama

  “Can I ask one more time? Is this really true?”

  “If you believe Star Reader–Second Sight, then…”

  Everyone looked down at the pages again with a bitter face.

  The part they had all stopped at was the description of the King of Darkness’s army.

  “Hundreds of death knights—at least two hundred. Hundreds of soul eaters—at least three hundred. This army is…worse than bad! If it went berserk, the kingdom, empire, the city-state alliance, and the Sacred Kingdom would be obliterated!”

  “We would be, too. If they surged for an attack, it would take centuries to recover from the damage.”

  Death knights…

  Estimated difficulty rating: 100-plus. They created squire zombies, and those created regular zombies. The zombies themselves had no fighting ability, but they could contribute to stronger undead spawning in the area.

  Soul eaters…

  Estimated difficulty rating: 100–150. An undead with a bombardment ability that ate the souls of those it killed. It had an ability that made its powers stronger the more souls it ate. It also gave off an aura that caused fear, meaning anyone who wasn’t a caster who could use tier three or higher would have a rough time facing them.

  Even just one of each could destroy a city—or a country if it was unlucky.

  “She didn’t mistake them? Or could the King of Darkness have realized we were watching and created illusions of them to confuse us?” Yvon stuck a withered finger in the air and brought up several possible explanations.

  Some voices oohed that it could be that, but Raymond cut them off.

  “Black Scripture members have knowledge about all sorts of monsters pounded into them. Certainly, it’s unclear if she remembers it all, but she—Star Reader–Second Sight—oversaw the knowledge side of things. It’s unthinkable that she would make a mistake like that. Additionally, we’ve confirmed the presence of death knights and soul eaters at the capital of the Nation of Darkness, what used to be E-Rantel.”

  There came the sound of several exhausted sighs.

  Everyone sounded incredibly tired, forced to accept this truth, as their murmured consultations began.

  “What should we do? Our job is to protect people, so what is our best course of action? What can we do about five hundred monsters so powerful that a single one could destroy a country?”

  “So they have the military might of five hundred small countries…? That’s insane. What a balance-breaking nation.”

  “The question is what the King of Darkness will use that might for. If he just has it for defense, then there shouldn’t be any issues for a while.”

  “Don’t be stupid. That’s far too much to protect his own country. And in the first place, isn’t he an undead? They hate the living. I have no doubt he’ll attack neighboring countries.”

  “There’s no point in thinking about what he might do with the power he has. We should be thinking about how to counter him.”

  That was right, so their conversation changed course.

  “Then…the most important thing is whether the Black Scripture can handle it or not.”

  The Black Scripture was the Slane Theocracy’s most powerful trump card. It was a special unit made up of heroes—similar to a team of adamantite-plate adventurers but definitively different. Adventurers barely managed to obtain gear spoken of in the heroic sagas, left behind by the gods, at the end of a hard search, but members of the Black Scripture all possessed multiple pieces.

  And even if they couldn’t beat their opponents, all they had to do was perform a ritual to summon high-level angels to fight for them.

  Surely high-level angels wouldn’t lose to death knights and soul eaters. But when they considered the numbers, they were left anxious.

  Everyone looked at Raymond.

  He cracked a smile. The ones who inadvertently responded to his smile with their own smiles froze stiff upon his next words.

  “It can’t. As former third chair of the Black Scripture, allow me to say that going up against five hundred of those things is begging for death. Once we’re evenly numbered, we’ve already reached despair. No, if that wasn’t the case, Star Reader–Second Sight wouldn’t be holed up in her room…”

  His smile morphed into a different type.

  “Of course, it’s different for demigods.”

  The others oohed.

  “I’m sure even if death knights and soul eaters attacked, those two could handle them. Of course, we should have a surefire backup just in case.”

  “So those two can do it?”

  “That’s encouraging.”

  Amid the flood of cheers, Zinedine sighed. When they heard how gloomy and tired he sounded, the rest of them lowered their voices.

  “…What are you hiding?”

  “Zinedine, what do you mean?”

  “The laws don’t prohibit perjury, fabrication, or concealment, but we’re comrades with a common goal, so we should have tacitly agreed that those things are deadly sins. With that in mind, I’ll ask again. What are you hiding?”

  “Really, Zinedine. What are you talking about? Why are you asking that?”

  “Dominic, there’s something bothering me. Why is Star Reader–Second Sight locked in her room?” When he realized no one could reply, he continued, “Out of pessimism. Or perhaps shock. That undead army was probably terrifying. But would a member of the Black Scripture hole up in their room over that…? It’s because she witnessed a power that not even demigods could defeat. This isn’t the end of the report, is it?”

  Everyone looked between Raymond and Zinedine.

  “…What were you planning to accomplish by keeping it secret? I trust you. I know you’re not the kind of man who would use the scriptures for your own ends. But what is it you feel you can’t discuss here?”

  “Brilliant. So perceptive as always, Zinedine. I was going to see what was possible first, but…well, let’s just talk about it now. It was giving me stomach pains thinking about it on my own, so it’s best if I can share with all of you.” Raymond scanned everyone’s faces. “How much have you all heard about the war between the kingdom and the empire—no, the Nation of Darkness?”

  The one who spoke up as representative was the high priest superior. “I heard the King of Darkness cast an immensely powerful spell. It demolished the Re-Estize Army, and the kingdom was defeated. As a result, E-Rantel was turned over in a deal that appeared to have been decided prior to the fight, and the Nation of Darkness was established. That’s as far as I’ve heard.”

  “Do you know how many people died?”

  The high priest superior shook his head in response to Raymond’s question. “I haven’t heard that much. If I haven’t heard, then probably the rest of you haven’t, either, right?”

  “Right. Since that country with a monster leading it took over E-Rantel, none of the priests or merchants go there anymore. The only news we can get is unverifiable hearsay.”

  “That’s what we have the scriptures for. For this one, probably not the Flurry Scripture but the Springwater Scripture, right?”

  “Oh. So there’s information that only you as the leader of the six scriptures are privy to. All we get are leaks and rumors.”

  “…Is that so? Then next I’ll hand out a detailed report of the war Star Reader–Second Sight saw.”

  After they read the new document, the room was filled with nothing but silence.

  Perhaps Yvon thought things couldn’t keep going on like that? He suddenly asked a question. “I see; I see. You didn’t show us this first thing because you didn’t want our hearts to stop?”

  “It was nothing like that. Your hearts are plenty tough, I’m sure. But I did wonder, if I gave you this first, if you would even believe it.”

  Yvon grudgingly nodded. “That’s a good point. Had I seen this first, I might have doubted it. I certainly wouldn’t have been sure about it. But once we understand that the King of Darkness’s army from the previous document is
the truth, then the rest of this that she saw must also be true.”

  “But…I don’t want to believe it. Over half the kingdom’s army died from a single spell? The army mobilized two hundred sixty thousand troops for this fight. Even just half of that would be one hundred thirty thousand! I heard the kingdom’s army was annihilated, but this is…”

  “This is just what she saw, right? It’s common enough to overestimate casualties.”

  “Still, even if you just take the line about the single wing being obliterated, that’s eighty thousand dead. And then he sacrificed them to summon those hideous monsters…?”

  “We can’t deny what she saw. This is divine magic. Tier eleven, don’t you think? Which can only mean one thing…”

  “The advent of a god?”

  “It does say here that he looked like… Could it be a second coming?”

  “That’s impossible. According to the oral tradition, Lord Sulshana, the god of death, was killed by those horrible Eight Kings of Avarice. This has to be someone different. Besides, if it were the second coming of Lord Sulshana, I’m sure we would hear something from his number one follower.”

  “Another one has come, then?”

  “Probably. It’s been two hundred years, right?”

  “The oral tradition indicates about that much. Of course, there’s the chance one could have appeared somewhere on the continent during that time.”

  “Since that lousy plan got thrown off, our national power hasn’t improved as much as we wanted it to.”

  “Those idiots in the kingdom…”

  That one remark made hatred shine in everyone’s eyes.

  The kingdom was the country established in the safest location. The Theocracy assisted with that because it hoped that the kingdom would be humanity’s salvation. Thanks to the safe, fertile land, many children would be born, including many outstanding characters who would grow up into heroes who would fight off the onslaught of other races. Comfort and affluence, however, invited corruption, and the kingdom had gone rotten from the inside out.

  The biggest headache was that they produced narcotics and spread them all over another capable country, the empire.

  By the time that had happened, the Theocracy changed tack.

  Their second plan was to have the empire annex the kingdom and train promising individuals.

  The reason the Theocracy didn’t annex the kingdom itself was that with the council state next door, public opinion could swing toward destroying it.

  The Theocracy’s philosophy was that humans were the race chosen by the gods and that other races were to be wiped out. By having everyone believe that they were surrounded by enemies and they had to work together, they were able to focus national energy tightly and strengthen it. But if they were next to the council state, their doctrine could zoom off in a dangerous direction.

  The people gathered in this room knew the other countries’ strengths, their own country’s strength, and their priorities, which was why they were able to think about what the Slane Theocracy’s next moves should be. But it wasn’t hard to imagine the people calling for war against the council state in order to eliminate the races that were the enemies of humans.

  That would be the worst.

  The council state was strong.

  More specifically, an individual from the council state was strong: the Platinum Dragonlord. He was the child of the dragon emperor—and dangerous. Fighting with one of the strongest living dragonlords could end with their country becoming a mound of ashes. But what would people ignorant of that fact think—about simply sitting there alongside a neighbor who should be destroyed?

  The people in the room could hold them back with force, but the resulting resentment would surely chip away at their nation’s strength. They couldn’t even deny the possibility of war breaking out.

  Which was why the Theocracy couldn’t be adjacent to the council state or rule the kingdom directly. And the kingdom was too big to rule from the shadows.

  “Let’s focus on the King of Darkness timeline. For starters, he has to be the one who annihilated the Sunlit Scripture we sent out.”

  The atmosphere froze stiff.

  “That caster calling himself Ainz Ooal Gown appeared in the village around the same time.”

  “Then what was that vampire the Black Scripture encountered?”

  “I think there’s a good chance that it was another being in the same position as the King of Darkness, one of them.”

  “That could be. In that case, there’s precedent for multiple appearances at once. Perhaps Jaldabaoth is one, too? Then the power he displayed in the kingdom would make sense. And it explains why such a powerful monster would show up so suddenly.”

  “Then what about Momon? Supposedly he came after the vampire, but if our earlier guesses are right, then he’s the same sort of being as the King of Darkness. That explains why he’s equally matched with Jaldabaoth. The question is whether he’s friends with the King of Darkness or not…”

  “Momon obliterated the vampire and opposed Jaldabaoth. There’s a good chance they’re the same type of beings but enemies. Or maybe they were enemies up to that point? Then they made a deal with the King of Darkness and became friends?”

  “It’s not clear whether he’s against the King of Darkness simply because he vanquished the vampire. He could have been under orders to kill it. Maybe he killed it because it was being controlled by the supreme treasure. By why is he hostile to Jaldabaoth…? Could Momon be aligned with the King of Darkness but against Jaldabaoth?”

  “…So there’s the version where Jaldabaoth and the vampire are a team and Momon and the King of Darkness are a team. There’s the version where the vampire, Jaldabaoth, Momon, and the King of Darkness are all against one another. There are all kinds of other conceivable combinations. We just don’t have enough information.”

  “The worst case would be if they were all allies, but that seems unlikely. Momon is too quiet. Normally, if you had that much power, you would be more daring. Yes, like the Eight Kings of Avarice. Or like our gods.”

  “Aha! So the reason they aren’t doing that is because they’re wary of one another? Or they could be worried about others.”

  “We should assume that since the King of Darkness has actively established a country, there will be others who will move to gain equal fighting power. If what Momon said was true, Honyopnyoko has a friend. We should be on the lookout for that one in addition to Jaldabaoth.”

  “Overall, we’re merely speculating. The only way to know for sure would be to ask Momon or the King of Darkness.”

  “That’s too dangerous. Much too dangerous. First, we should draw information out of the empire. We should try to get in touch with the emperor.”

  “That would be best. If the emperor isn’t already the King of Darkness’s pet.”

  “We can’t avoid a bit of a gamble. If we’re timid, we’ll be too late.”

  “But will ‘a bit’ really be all? If we’re not lucky, couldn’t it be used as an excuse to declare war on us? First, we should bring things up casually with the emperor to find out his stance.”

  As everyone agreed with those proposals, one of them suddenly asked a question. “…But won’t the masses in E-Rantel revolt against undead rule? They weren’t all killed, were they? Or has he established total rule by fear?”

  It was addressed to Raymond, and he gave an unbelievable answer. “According to reports, governance is proceeding peacefully.”

  It was only natural that uncharacteristic yelps were emitted here and there. “Huh?!”

  “It’s true that once you hit our age, your ears start to go, but mine seemed to have worsened dramatically. I heard you say ‘peacefully,’ Raymond.”

  “Yes, yes. I heard the same. Ha-ha. Peacefully with an undead! …Hmph, a peaceful undead.”

  “I wouldn’t be surprised if the sun rose in the north tomorrow.”

  “…Setting aside jokes for now, if what Sir Raymond says is t
rue, it’s so difficult to imagine. Are you sure the ones bringing the information aren’t morally bankrupt or being sarcastic?”

  “The reports say that death knights are on guard, elder liches run the administration, and soul eaters pull carriages to transport cargo.”

  The jaws of everyone besides Raymond dropped.

  “Whoa, whoa, wait. What? Say that again?” Maximilian’s glasses were still tilted as he asked his question.

  Raymond repeated the news word for word.

  This time everyone emitted an uncharacteristic “Huh?!”

  Those were all elite undead. Or they should have been. But those knights of the netherworld were patrolling the streets like useless officials, the masters of the labyrinth were managing distribution, and monsters that could ruin walled castle towns were being used as donkeys. That sort of country was just beyond their borders.

  “What in the…? What sort of hell…is that?”

  In a city where the undead threw their weight around managing municipal affairs, they could only imagine that the humans had been annihilated.

  “No, the people of the former city of E-Rantel—the subjects of the Nation of Darkness—are living normal lives. There was a bit of confusion in the beginning, of course, but things are calm now.”

  “…Perhaps we underestimated the kingdom.”

  “Indeed… What mental fortitude.”

  Life-hating undead stalking by right next to me… The thought gave everyone the chills.

  It was like having a starving beast right there. Any normal person would be terrified.

  “I imagine it’s because they believe in the great warrior, the hero-level adventurer Momon of Raven Black, that they can tolerate it.”

  Raymond began to explain what happened the day the city was opened to the King of Darkness.

  Everyone listened with sober expressions.

  “It does seem like Momon and the King of Darkness might have been on the same side originally.”

  “My. This does seem to be the proof that Momon and the King of Darkness are in cahoots. They did both appear around the same time, right?”

  “Hrrrm.” Everyone cradled their heads.

  Either was possible, but they didn’t have confirmation one way or another.